Investigators are trying to open a concealed, heavily secured vault at former President Santiago Peña’s mansion in San Bernardino, Paraguay. (Foto: Instagram)
Paraguayan police and prosecutors have been trying since early Monday, Nov. 9, to open a secret vault found at former President Santiago Peña’s mansion during search-and-seizure operations over the weekend. The vault is behind a concealed passage and a false wall.
The door is protected by four layers of security. Paraguayan newspaper ABC reported that the vault uses Israeli technology and requires access codes, multiple checks and the owner’s iris recognition. Peña’s mansion is in San Bernardino, about 50 miles from Asunción.
Investigators suspect that money from Banco Ueno loan disbursements may have been used to build the heavily secured residence, according to Paraguayan media. Peña reportedly spent more than 6 million Brazilian reais on its construction. He has been impeached and placed in preventive detention over alleged involvement in the bank’s financial scandal.
Eight Banco Ueno executives were also arrested in connection with the scandal. The institution, described as Paraguay’s largest digital bank, had nearly 3 million customers. After it collapsed, thousands of Paraguayans were left unable to access the funds in their accounts.
Banco Ueno is accused of manipulating its assets to make its operations appear credible and of granting loans to companies linked to the group that controlled the bank. The investigation into the bank and the circumstances surrounding its collapse is ongoing.
