Eljuri offices in Cuenca raided by judicial police; Elder Eljuri provides voluntary testimony in Quito

A warehouse belonging to the Almacenes Juan Eljuri was raided Wednesday night in Cuenca by federal judicial police. The raid followed a Tuesday court order of preventive detention for Juan Pablo Eljuri, seizure of his property and a freeze on his bank accounts.

The Eljuri warehouse in Cuenca.

According to a police statement, the raid was carried out for the purpose of confiscating files and computer drives in the Eljuri office located on Av. Gil Ramírez Dávalos, opposite the main Cuenca bus terminal. The raid was conducted by the elite GEMA unit of the judicial police on orders of the attorney general’s office in Quito.

Tuesday’s court order was issued by Judge Cristina Guerrón of the Pichincha Criminal court based on evidence linking Eljuri to illegal payments to public officials in the Odebrecht corruption scandal. According to prosecutor Diana Salazar, the South American International Bank (Sai Bank) in Curaçao, owned by Eljuri, accepted deposits from Odebrecht representatives that were then paid as bribes. Sai Bank also operated an unlicensed branch office in Cuenca, Salazar said.

Juan Gabriel Eljuri, center, at the prosecutor’s office in Quito on Thursday. (El Comercio)

According to court authorities, Eljuri left Ecuador for Colombia on August 24 and is believed staying at a family property on Curaçao.

The attorney general’s office said it will provide more information on the police raid Thursday afternoon or Friday.

Meanwhile, Juan Pablo Eljuri’s father, Juan Gabriel Eljuri, presented voluntarily testimony to Salazar at the prosecutor’s office in Quito on Thursday morning. Juan Gabriel Eljuri was accompanied by a team of attorneys.