Draft bill 344.

Summary.

The draft bill establishes a framework for investigating and prosecuting offenses against public administration, money laundering arising from those offenses, and other crimes that harm the State, as well as returning and recovering related assets. It provides for application consistent with the Constitution (Constitución), treaties ratified by Panama, and the Criminal Procedure Code (Código Procesal Penal). It defines seized and forfeited property, complex cases, persons required to cooperate, and the distinction between returning State property and recovering other criminal proceeds. Investigations may begin on the authorities’ initiative, following a report, or upon a criminal complaint, independently of property or administrative liability. Affected public institutions must report the conduct, join proceedings as complainants, preserve records, and respond to the Public Prosecution Service (Ministerio Público).

Prosecutors may carry out investigative measures, gather evidence, and examine the assets of persons under investigation or charged. Expert examinations and audits may be performed by personnel from State entities, public universities, police bodies, and the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences (Instituto de Medicina Legal y Ciencias Forenses). A prior audit or endorsement by the Office of the Comptroller General (Contraloría General de la República) is unnecessary where facts can be established through other evidence. Prosecutors may provisionally seize property linked to an offense, subject to judicial review within ten (10) days. They may seek a declaration that a case is complex and a reasoned extension of procedural periods. They may also restrict access to proceedings for thirty (30) consecutive days, renewable for an equal period, subject to judicial review requested by the defense.

The bill governs court-authorized interception of communications for up to three (3) months, renewable for an equal period, and seizure of correspondence. In specified exceptional circumstances, seizure of correspondence requires judicial review within forty-eight (48) hours. It establishes undercover operations, limits on an agent’s criminal liability and protection of the agent’s identity, physical or digital surveillance, domestic and international controlled deliveries, controlled purchases, and seizure of electronic data. It specifies when prior authorization or later review by a guarantees judge is required and requires reasoned prosecutorial decisions. Information obtained through these techniques may be used in directly related proceedings with subsequent judicial authorization; investigative steps may be recorded by audio, video, or photographs.

Public and private communications providers must assist the Public Prosecution Service confidentially. Other persons formally required to cooperate must comply or respond within the assigned period, which may be three (3) to fifteen (15) business days and extended by up to five (5) days. After a hearing, a guarantees judge may impose progressive coercive fines of one thousand balboas (B/. 1,000.00) to fifty thousand balboas (B/. 50,000.00) for unjustified noncompliance. The bill sets conditions for treating documents downloaded from official portals as authentic and governs plea agreements involving individuals and legal entities, including performance guarantees, supervision, and consequences of breach.

It defines effective cooperation, eligibility requirements, possible benefits, and judicial approval of cooperation agreements. Obligations include returning or surrendering assets, assisting investigative measures, and undertaking to testify at trial. It provides identity and safety protection, separate detention from other persons involved, and cooperation agreements after the intermediate hearing. Complainants, witnesses, and cooperating persons may receive protection suited to their risk, potentially extended to relatives. The Public Prosecution Service and the Judicial Branch (Órgano Judicial) must establish protocols. Measures include relocation, psychological assistance, security, employment protection, and transfer to another unit. Retaliation may incur a fine of one thousand balboas (B/. 1,000.00) to twenty-five thousand balboas (B/. 25,000.00).

The bill provides for international legal cooperation, spontaneous transmission of information, and joint investigation teams with foreign authorities. It regulates each team’s founding agreement, leadership, activities in Panama and abroad, and direct information exchange. It also addresses locating and securing assets abroad, early sale of property that is costly to maintain, and requests for asset return or recovery following a final judgment. Returned State property goes to the affected institution; forfeited property that did not belong to the State enters the National Treasury (Tesoro Nacional). Of the latter, thirty percent (30%) is allocated to the Public Prosecution Service, the Judicial Branch, and the Ministry of Security (Ministerio de Seguridad), with transfer and tracing mechanisms adopted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance (Ministerio de Economía y Finanzas).

Finally, the bill amends the Criminal Procedure Code on limitation periods, suspension of proceedings, conflicts of interest affecting former judges and prosecutors, and expert witnesses’ appearance or replacement. It amends the Criminal Code (Código Penal) on community service; Law 59 of July 29, 1999 (Ley 59 de 29 de julio de 1999) on unjustified enrichment investigations without making them dependent on a Comptroller’s report; and Law 23 of 2015 (Ley 23 de 2015) on updating and retaining due diligence records. Its provisions would concern the Office of the Attorney General (Procuraduría General de la Nación), the Supreme Court of Justice (Corte Suprema de Justicia), the Prison Technical Board (Junta Técnica Penitenciaria), affected public institutions, communications providers, insurers, financial entities, supervised professionals, and employers.