---
title: "Prosecutor calls Judicial Council meeting after comptroller interrupts anti-corruption hearing"
date: 2026-04-10
author: ""
url: https://panamadaily.news/judicial-council-panama-comptroller-anti-corruption-hearing/
categories:
  - "News"
  - "Politics"
tags:
  - "Anel Flores"
  - "Anti-Corruption Prosecutor"
  - "José Gabriel Carrizo"
  - "Judicial Council"
  - "Panama"
  - "Supreme Court"
---

# Prosecutor calls Judicial Council meeting after comptroller interrupts anti-corruption hearing

## What Happened

Panama’s attorney general, Luis Carlos Gómez, has called a meeting of the Judicial Council after Comptroller Anel Flores entered a hearing at the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office while auditors from the Comptroller General’s Office were giving testimony in a judicial investigation.

The meeting is scheduled for Friday, April 10 at 2:00 p.m., and all members of the body have been summoned, including the Public Administration Prosecutor’s Office, the National Bar Association, representatives of civil society, magistrates of the Supreme Court, and the Attorney General’s Office.

The move comes after events recorded Thursday at the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, where a group of comptroller auditors appeared to explain findings from an audit involving former vice president José Gabriel Carrizo.

## Why the Council Is Meeting

The Judicial Council brings together judicial authorities, representatives of the prosecution service, civil society, and professional associations to coordinate issues related to the administration of justice and judicial independence.

It serves as a forum for examining situations that could affect the autonomy of judges and prosecutors, and for assessing whether any authority has overstepped its role in a way that could impact due process, transparency, or institutional balance.

In cases involving tension between institutions, the council can become an important space for discussing how to protect the independence of the Public Ministry and the broader justice system.

## The Case Involving José Gabriel Carrizo

Carrizo is being investigated for the alleged offense of unjustified enrichment and is currently subject to house arrest and a ban on leaving the country.

He was detained on January 27 at Tocumen International Airport after arriving from Guatemala. A guarantee judge later formally charged him with alleged unjustified enrichment and ordered the preventive measure of house arrest.

The hearing involving comptroller auditors centered on the findings of an audit linked to that investigation, placing the case under renewed public scrutiny as institutions weigh the limits of their authority within a sensitive corruption probe.

## Institutional Impact

The confrontation adds pressure to already delicate relations between Panama’s oversight bodies and the justice system. With the Judicial Council now stepping in, the episode is likely to be examined not only as part of the Carrizo case, but also as a test of institutional conduct and judicial independence.

For the public, the controversy underscores how anti-corruption investigations can quickly become a broader debate over the proper role of state institutions and the safeguards that protect ongoing criminal proceedings.