Justice rejects Portuguese-Angolan businessman’s claim of unconstitutionality

The Constitutional Court (CC) has rejected a claim of unconstitutionality filed by businessman Carlos San Vicente, who has been sentenced to nine years in prison for embezzlement, money laundering and tax fraud and has been imprisoned since September 2020.

In decision no. 825/2023, consulted by Lusa, the plenary of judges, which reviewed the extraordinary appeal of unconstitutionality by the former head of the AAA insurance company, rejected the motion because they considered that the principles, rights and constitutional guarantees invoked by Carlos San Vicente.

In their over 30-page assessment, the judges complain that the businessman, by his procedural conduct, does not contribute to speedy justice, preferring “long-winded style (…) extensive, repetitive and redundant” and “exuberant argument” in his approaches.

Among the arguments given are obstacles for lawyers, short deadlines for the consideration of the case, the lack of interrogation of witnesses, the introduction of new facts that were not included in the prosecution, an error in the assessment of evidence, the use of apocryphal scriptures as evidence, the omission of a statement on the liquidation of assets and compensation, etc.

Nine judges refute, one by one, all the points referred to in the appeal.

Portuguese-Angolan businessman Carlos San Vicente was sentenced last March to nine years in prison and a $500 million (€454 million) settlement.

Carlos San Vicente, husband of Irene Neto, daughter of the first president of Angola, has been in custody since September 2020.

The businessman, who for almost two decades had a monopoly on the insurance and reinsurance of the Angolan state oil company Sonangol through the AAA group, is said to have created a triangular scheme with companies in Angola, London and Bermuda, resulting in losses. million dollars for the Angolan treasure.