Lisbon, Oct. 14, 2024 (Lusa) - Lisbon's Central Criminal Court judges have rejected Ricardo Salgado's defence request to extinguish or suspend the criminal proceedings against the former chairman of the defunct Banco Espírito Santo in Portugal due to his Alzheimer's diagnosis, claiming that he retains his rights of defence.
"Regardless of the conclusions reached at the expert level, the criminal proceedings against the defendant Ricardo Salgado must continue, and the request is therefore rejected," reads an order by Judge Helena Susano, to which Lusa had access on Monday, referring to the BES/GES case, the largest in the so-called Espírito Santo Universe and whose trial begins this Tuesday.
According to the order, the panel of judges believes that "mental aptitude is not a requirement for the defendant to make a statement" and therefore emphasises that "it cannot constitute grounds for extinguishing the criminal proceedings" against the former banker, who is charged with 62 crimes.
"It cannot be said that the defendant Ricardo Espírito Santo Silva Salgado is being arbitrarily deprived of any rights of defence, but only to the extent that his illness imposes, that these rights of defence will be exercised by him to the extent permitted by his abilities," reads the order.
At issue for the former banker's defence was the current stage of Alzheimer's disease, which, according to the application submitted to the court, prevents him from fully exercising his right to defend himself against the charges brought by the public prosecutor.
In light of this limitation, the defence considered that the criminal proceedings against the former chairman of BES should be extinguished or, alternatively, suspended.
However, the panel of judges believes that the former banker should not be removed from the trial and that the official suspect's view "cannot be upheld by the Court", as it is justified by another aspect: "The public interest in obtaining the material truth and realising the goals of general positive prevention, social pacification and the restoration of legal peace".
"Even if it were considered, in view of the documentary evidence presented, that the defendant suffers from Alzheimer's disease, in conditions that could constitute a psychic anomaly, the claim expressed by the defendant has no support," the judges said.
Despite noting that Alzheimer's disease can have an effect on the official suspect's ability to defend himself, the court defended the fact that psychic abnormality "does not constitute a cause of criminal procedural incapacity, nor does it lead to the suspension or termination of the proceedings", noting that Ricardo Salgado enjoys better conditions of defence than many other citizens.
"In fact, it could be argued that the defendant, in view of the overall defence that he has exercised, is in better conditions than certain citizens who, although entirely healthy in cognitive terms, do not have the educational preparation of the official suspect or the technical defence that he benefits from," the order stated.
The panel of judges therefore concluded that Ricardo Salgado's trial does not go against the constitutional guarantees of criminal procedure or the right to a fair trial.
Considered one of the biggest cases in the history of Portuguese justice, this case brings together in the main case 242 inquiries, which were joined, and complaints from more than 300 people, natural and legal, living in Portugal and abroad.
According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the collapse of the GES empire caused losses of over €11.8 billion.
JGO/AYLS // AYLS
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