GON WILL RE-SEND REQUEST FOR DOMINICAN ASSISTANCE

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAGUA 000277

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CEN
TREASURY FOR OASIA-JLEVINE
DHS FOR CIS-CARLOS ITURREGUI

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/03/2021
TAGS: PGOV PREL KCRM KCOR DR NU
SUBJECT: GON WILL RE-SEND REQUEST FOR DOMINICAN ASSISTANCE
IN ALEMAN CASE--THIS TIME WITH DIP NOTE

REF: A. SANTO DOMINGO 287


B. SANTO DOMINGO 344

Classified By: AMBASSADOR PAUL TRIVELLI. REASONS 1.4 (B,D).


1. (C) The Nicaraguan government will re-send its June 2005
Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) request for Dominican
assistance in the money laundering investigation of
ex-President Arnoldo Aleman. This time the request will be
accompanied by a GON diplomatic note to the Dominican Foreign
Ministry formally requesting the assistance.


2. (C) On February 3, poloff and RLA met MFA Americas
Director Domingo Salinas and Attorney General for Criminal
Affairs Ivan Lara to discuss the issues raised in reftels and
emphasize the need for a Nicaraguan diplomatic note formally
requesting the assistance of the Dominican government. Lara
explained that under the Inter-American Convention on Mutual
Assistance in Criminal Matters, no diplomatic note is
necessary; for that reason his office had simply submitted an
MLAT request via diplomatic channels in June 2005. Lara
added that his office has received excellent cooperation in
the Aleman investigation from the USG and the Government of
Panama without such formalities. However, Lara is willing to
work with the MFA to re-submit the 2005 MLAT request along
with a diplomatic note if it would facilitate cooperation
with the Dominican government. Lara promised to deliver the
MLAT documents to the MFA on February 6, and Salinas will
have the diplomatic note ready and send the entire package to
the Nicaraguan Embassy in Santo Domingo during the week of
February 6-10.


3. (C) Lara told emboffs that when he met Dominican Attorney
General Francisco Dominguez Brito to request assistance in
the Aleman case in May 2005, he received the impression that
Dominguez Brito was not interested in investigating the case,
possibly because evidence might arise of prominent Dominicans
being involved with Aleman's illicit transactions. Lara
speculated that Dominguez Brito might now have had a change
of heart because of his senate run, and might be seeking to
protect himself from allegations of inaction in the Aleman
case. Once the diplomatic note and MLAT request are formally
received by the Dominican government, Lara suggested that
subsequent bilateral cooperation should be less formal, and
more analogous to that between his office and its
counterparts in the U.S. and Panama.


4. (C) Post will follow up with Lara and the MFA to ensure
that the diplomatic note and MLAT request are sent, and would
appreciate Embassy Santo Domingo's follow up thereafter to
confirm that the documents have been received by the
appropriate Dominican government offices.
TRIVELLI