All six suspects were sent to trial as part of the Latina Prosecutor’s Office investigation into massive tax evasion by migrant assistance cooperatives belonging to Karibu. Preliminary hearing judge Pierpaolo Bortone established the charge against Marie Terese Mukamitsindo (mother-in-law of former Left-Green Alliance MP Aboubakar Soumahoro), her children Michel Rukundo, Liliane Murekatete (Soumahoro’s wife), Richard Mutangana, as well as Ghislaine Ada Ndongo and Christine Ndyanabo Koburangyira. Regarding the positions of Richard Mutangana and Christine Ndyanabo Koburangyira, during the first hearing before the single judge of the Latin court, Simona Sergio, their state of unavailability may be declared and they will therefore be removed. The trial will begin on January 24, 2024.
Within the scope of the accusations, in the last hearing the Public Prosecutor’s Office integrated the disputes relating to the 2018 and 2019 tax returns while the judge admitted the civil parties, including unions and workers. On October 30th, the two women, members of the Board of Directors of the integrated social cooperative «Karibu», ended up under house arrest as part of the other aspect of the investigation, conducted by the Financial Police, in which accusations of fraud in the public supply, fraudulent bankruptcy of assets (due to distraction) and self-laundering in the management of cooperatives. «We requested the acquisition of the minutes of the meeting to explain that there were no conditions to identify Murekatate’s legal responsibility – lawyer Lorenzo Borrè, defender of deputy Soumahoro’s wife, told Adnkronos -. At the trial we will propose the same requests again to demonstrate their non-involvement in the controversial facts.”
Source: IL Tempo
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
