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ANDIS Corruption Case: Testimonies Begin After First Arrest in 48.8 Billion-Peso Probe

Prosecutors have summoned 15 suspects, presenting phone and notebook records that allege a scheme steering high-cost health purchases affecting disability beneficiaries.

Overview

  • Urologist Pablo Atchabahian was detained under house arrest in Mendoza and refused to testify, becoming the first person arrested in the case after weeks of evading court orders.
  • Judge Sebastián Casanello opened a round of indagatorias starting Tuesday with lobbyist Miguel Ángel Calvete, with former ANDIS head Diego Spagnuolo scheduled to appear Wednesday.
  • Prosecutor Franco Picardi alleges an organized network that rigged procurement, inflated prices and paid kickbacks, estimating roughly 48.783 billion pesos in public funds were affected.
  • Investigators cite seized cell phones, WhatsApp chats and handwritten notebooks—particularly from Calvete—as documentary evidence of coordinated payments, contact lists and directed contracts.
  • The judge denied detention requests for some suspects, including Spagnuolo and Daniel Garbellini, imposing travel bans, asset freezes and periodic court appearances, while the executive branch downplays broader political exposure.