BRIEFS. Judicial

Judge rules in favor of grupo f in electric case

David Mesa/La Prensa

power outage: A judge has ruled that electric company Metro Oeste improperly collected evidence in a case against Grupo F.1082303

A judge has dismissed criminal charges filed against businessman Jean Figali for allegedly stealing electricity.

According to a decision issued by the 14th Criminal Court, the company, Metro Oeste, improperly gathered evidence about the alleged theft. That evidence was used by prosecutors to file the charges.

Alternate Judge José Ángel Carrera based his decision on the fact that Metro Oeste staff improperly conducted inspections of the Centro de Convenciones Figali, on the Amador Causeway.

The electric company complained that Figali's company, Grupo F, stole $170,000 of electricity for the convention center.

Carrera said that the procedures used by the company to document the theft did not meet acceptable legal standards.

Grupo F has been the subject of numerous legal complaints about the work being done by the company on the causeway. In addition to the controversy surrounding the convention center, the company has also been accused by the government of violating the conditions of its concession in that area.