High Court taps judge in senator´s Bautista US$300.0M graft case

Santo Domingo.- SupremeCourt chief justice Mariano German on Thursday appointed judge Mariana D. Garciato complete its Criminal Chamber, and set for September 22 the next hearing in thecase of senator Felix Bautista and six others charged with money laundering andembezzling what some outlets report as more than US$300.0 million.

The judge appointedby order of the, as the judge who complete the quorum to meet the request for apreliminary trial of coercion half against the legislator and the othersinvolved.

The designation of Garcia,a judge in the National District Appellate Court, aims to surmount the deadlockemerged in the August 11 hearing in the Supreme Court Criminal Chamber, whereits president Miriam German ruled to suspend the case until the bench vacancywas filled.

At the reading of thesentence last month, German said the ruling was evenly split with two judges infavor of acquittal and two against.