Colombia’s prosecution and Comptroller General’s Office are investigating what happened to thousands of assets that apparently went missing after they were seized by law enforcement.
The authorities began the investigation after President Gustavo Petro warned that the state-run company that manages seized assets, the Special Assets Society (SAE), could be involved in “one of the worst acts of corruption in history.”
The SAE’s newly appointed CEO, Daniel Rojas, confirmed that thousands of assets registered to his firm only exist on paper.
Rojas additionally said that the SAE’s inventory of assets lacks information about the condition and estimated market value of real estate in custody of the company.. Last but not least, real estate properties in custody of the SAE would be occupied illegally.
The alleged chaos spurred Rojas to demand investigations, the SAE chief said last month. The agency was already under fire over the alleged mismanagement of FARC assets surrendered by the former guerrillas following a 2016 peace deal.