---
title: "Panama court sets June 3 trial for Aaron Mizrachi in Odebrecht money-laundering case"
date: 2026-05-18
modified: 2026-05-24
author: ""
url: https://panamadaily.news/2026/05/18/odebrecht-trial-aaron-mizrachi-panama/
categories:
  - "Crime"
  - "News"
  - "Politics"
tags:
  - "Aaron Mizrachi"
  - "anti-corruption"
  - "money laundering"
  - "Odebrecht"
  - "Panama courts"
  - "Ricardo Martinelli"
---

# Panama court sets June 3 trial for Aaron Mizrachi in Odebrecht money-laundering case

## What Happened

Panama’s anti-corruption court has set June 3 as the trial date for Aaron Mizrachi, who faces a money-laundering charge linked to funds tied to Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht. Judge Baloisa Marquínez also scheduled June 24 as an alternate date in case the defense or the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office faces a procedural setback.

The case is part of the long-running Odebrecht corruption scandal, one of the most consequential graft investigations in Latin America. In Panama, the sprawling case has already reached former officials, business figures, and intermediaries accused of helping move money connected to the company’s bribery network.

## How the Case Reached Trial

Mizrachi’s path back to trial followed a Supreme Court ruling that overturned a previous decision by the First Superior Court of Justice, which had removed him from the proceedings. That earlier ruling came after a constitutional protection request challenged the charges and succeeded in excluding him from the trial that began on January 12 and ended on February 27.

The Supreme Court later determined that Mizrachi should remain in the case. In its February 3, 2026 decision, the court rejected the argument that there had been an error in how the offense was described and said the nullity challenge used by the defense was not the proper route to contest the order sending him to trial.

That ruling restored Judge Marquínez’s April 4, 2025 order calling Mizrachi to trial, clearing the way for the new hearing date set for June.

## Why Mizrachi Matters in the Odebrecht Case

Prosecutors say Mizrachi received funds through his company, Caribbean Holding Ltd., and then transferred money to Importadora Ricarmar, linked to Ricardo Martinelli, and to former President Juan Carlos Varela, both of whom are also charged in the case. Prosecutors contend that Caribbean Holding received money from Odebrecht’s so-called Caja 2, the offshore slush fund used by the company for illicit payments.

The prosecution’s case also relies on testimony from Alejandro Díaz Araúz, identified as the sales manager of Caribbean Holding, who said Mizrachi managed the company’s accounts. In addition, Odebrecht’s collaboration agreement with justice authorities produced payment records showing orders totaling $1.4 million in favor of Caribbean Holding Services Ltd.

Mizrachi is also publicly known as the brother-in-law of former President Ricardo Martinelli and the father of Mayor Mayer Mizrachi, a family connection that has kept the case under close public scrutiny in Panama. The trial will draw attention because it tests how far Panamanian prosecutors and courts can go in tracing the flow of Odebrecht money beyond the company itself and into local political and business circles.

## What Comes Next

The June 3 hearing is expected to be a key moment in the broader Odebrecht proceedings, which have shaped Panama’s anti-corruption agenda for years. If the trial proceeds as scheduled, the court will examine whether the payments tied to Caribbean Holding were part of a laundering scheme designed to move illicit funds through Panama’s corporate and banking system.

For Panama, the case remains important not only because of the names involved, but because it reflects the country’s continuing effort to prosecute complex financial crimes linked to public corruption. The outcome may also influence how courts handle future challenges to anti-corruption indictments and the use of corporate structures in money trails.