Pinhel City Council President Rui Ventura says he is calm and refutes allegations of embezzlement contained in a document released Tuesday that the mayor attributes to current political circumstances.
Speaking to the Lusa agency, the mayor of Pingel, in the Guarda district, confirmed that he was heard as part of the process during the investigation phase and that he refuted “each of the points. calm,” he says.
ABOUT Newspaper (JN) reports on Tuesday that the Social Democratic mayor is accused by the Guarda prosecutor’s office of 31 crimes of embezzlement related to the use of a municipal credit card and a car for personal purposes.
Rui Ventura believes that the case is related to the current political circumstances, confirming to Lusa that his name tops the list for the legislative elections of the Guarda circle, submitted by the PSD district to the national authorities. “There’s a party this week [PSD] You have to make a decision on candidates for parliament, and my name comes first,” he emphasizes.
Rui Ventura says he trusts the functioning of the justice system, but concludes that the news is “deeply linked and motivated by the electoral context that the country is going through” and that his name is “unfairly used to achieve party goals.”
Regarding the consequences of this process, Rui Ventura says that he is “calm”, but has not even commented on the situation.
ABOUT JN reports that between 2018 and 2020, the Social Democratic mayor used the Chamber’s credit card to pay for food, hotels, household appliances and even a Netflix subscription. He also used a car (BMW), bought at a direct auction, to travel to PSD conventions and Benfica games.
The case is under investigation. If found guilty, Rui Ventura could lose his mandate in the Pinhel Chamber and be forced to return 45 thousand euros, describes JN.
In a note published on the municipality’s digital platforms, Rui Ventura guarantees that he has never used a municipality vehicle for personal purposes and that he has never used a municipality credit card to pay for expenses, accommodation or other services not related to the functions of the president. Chambers.
He adds that it is “untrue” that he purchased household appliances using a council credit card. It explains that “the above expenses were incurred to purchase equipment necessary for the holding of work meetings and in particular city council and municipal assembly meetings during the Covid-19 pandemic, namely computers, televisions and video cameras.” Rui Ventura also disputes that “the city council credit card paid for Netflix’s two years of monthly fees.”
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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