What Happened
The recent ratification of Nicolás Brea as director of the Autoridad del Tránsito y Transporte Terrestre (ATTT) has reopened scrutiny of the long-running “diablos rojos” indemnity case. Brea, together with Ventura Vega (secretary general of the Contraloría General de la República) and Jorge Ricardo Fábrega (presidential advisor), were among those investigated in the probe and now occupy influential positions in President José Raúl Mulino’s administration.
Brea was ratified by the full Asamblea Nacional on the afternoon of March 4, receiving the support of 55 deputies after passing the Credentials Commission earlier that day. During his hearing, Brea—who served as an ATTT adviser under the Martinelli administration—said the investigation began with a complaint from the 2009–2014 administration and “took an unexpected turn,” which led to his involvement.
Background
The case dates to the 2009–2014 period when President Ricardo Martinelli’s administration launched a costly plan to replace the classic buses known as “diablos rojos” with the new Metro Bus system and later complement it with the Panama Metro. In 2014 the Fiscalía Anticorrupción opened investigations that reached some 541 people, including 79 ATTT officials, on allegations that owners of the buses received double indemnities or payments for vehicles that were out of service.
Among those investigated were Ventura Vega, who was ATTT director from July 2012 to February 2013, and Jorge Ricardo Fábrega, director of the ATTT between 2010 and 2012. In July 2024 the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office shifted from pursuing charges to requesting exonerations for four former ATTT directors, including Vega and Fábrega. Prosecutors who worked the case included Blanca Jiménez, Ilka Poveda, Anilú Batista, Edwin Juárez, Pedro Menacho and Mahmad Daud Hasan; at one point Anilú Batista and Kyra Tascón sought that all 541 accused be brought to trial.
Judicial Outcome
The judicial process narrowed the list of those sent to trial—198 people were called to stand trial—and in September 2025 the Juzgado Primero Liquidador de Causas Penales issued a verdict absolving the implicated defendants. Prosecutors argued at trial that the responsibility for irregular payments lay with the technical evaluation commission in charge of managing indemnity claims, not the ex-directors.
What This Means
The presence of three figures once tied to the diablos rojos investigation in key roles—control, execution and advisory—raises questions about institutional checks, public accountability and perceptions of governance under President Mulino. Ventura Vega has a strategic position within the Contraloría, and Fábrega is part of the president’s inner advisory circle; together with Brea at the ATTT, their roles touch core functions of transport regulation, fiscal oversight and executive decision-making.
The developments underscore ongoing tensions between judicial outcomes and political appointments, and they have reignited public debate in Panama about how past controversies intersect with current governance.