DAY THIRTY-SIX: Trial Against David Castillo

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Last updated: June 12 at 12:35 pm

Main Points of the Day

  • Expert Harald Waxenecker was questioned by Castillo’s attorneys all day. The questioning will continue tomorrow morning at 9 am.

A screenshot of Harald Waxenecker as he testifies from Austria. Picture from COPINH

A screenshot of Harald Waxenecker as he testifies from Austria. Picture from COPINH

More Details

Castillo’s Attorneys Questions Expert Harald Waxenecker

  • Q: What is your definition of social networks? A: In the bibliography, I cite the authors of the term.

  • Q: You cite many authors, can you give the literal definition of social network? A: On page 7 is where I discuss this - its the relational networks between actors. (Waxenecker names the scholars that discuss the term)

  • Q: What do social networks consist of? A: They are constituted by nodes, actors, and the relationship between them. This is different from social systems, because social networks describe the position of distinct actors. I refer to the social actors and their relationship within the social realm inside society. The forms of relationships can be mulitple and the concept is one that is interdisciplinary. It was constructed and adapted during the development of theories starting in the 1990s. In the study, I use the phone calls and actors as the nodes and look at the interrelationships between them. This is one of the ways to approach social networks but the conceptualization comes from sociology. Social networks or relations can be very complex and have multiple spheres (work, social, family, etc). We are social beings and all of this is included in this theoretical concept.

  • Q: What are the social networks that exist and are used in the social network analysis? A: I think its important to emphasize the existence of social networks. It’s not feasible to just speak of existing social networks - there are social networks that exist between actors based on how they are related and form the network. I make reference to one form that I have used in another analysis. You can say that an executive has a relationship with a person who then has a relationship with another. This forms a network, a social network with business-like characteristics. The same is when you look at, for example, how relationships influence learning in a school. X person can say they are friends with Y but Y may say they aren’t - this is not a mutual relationship. They exist in all realms in our lives and we have multiple types of these networks.

  • Q: What does “social network analysis” mean since it’s written in English? A: It means analisis de redes sociales

  • Q: What is Facebook? Objection

  • Q: What is the difference between communication in social networks and private communication? A: Facebook is not what I’m speaking about. I can’t answer that question in those terms because in a way, it’s a virtual platform that involves relationships. It can be subject to analysis and studied but I don’t focus on that.

  • Q: What mechanisms do you have to follow and view private communications? Objection

  • Q: If you analysis isn’t about social networks virtually, then why do you use this tool in your study? Objection

  • Q: Why don’t you do an analysis on the Castillo’s military position - why did you say that being a sub-Lieutenant, that Castillo had an important position in the military? A: You have to contextual the position that Castillo had. You have to interpret it looking at his relationships with the Army and the National Electrical Energy Company (ENEE).

  • Q: What is the context? A: The context is 2009, that’s the same year when there was a critical contextual change in the country and within that, the acquisition process of contracts from the ENEE.

  • Q: You said that Castillo left the army in 2008 - why did you say that in 2009 he had an important position in the military? A: A central element that is key is to establish through analysis, where Castillo was working in 2009 and 2010 and above all, when the licensing occurred and when the contract was adjudicated. In this context, you have to locate Castillo. I understand that he was involved in the Army from 2008 and at the same time, he was a Management Coordinator inside the ENEE.

  • Q: Then how did you conclude that he had key positions in the military? Objection

  • Q: Let’s look at Castillo’s position in ENEE, what aspects do you have to consider to understand whether a person is in a position of power in an institution? A: You have to examine it in context, the context that surrounds the person - what position the person has inside the institution, what relationships they have. In this sense, you can emphasize Castillo’s position to an operator that is part of a network. That is precisely the phenomenon of power that I analyzed.

  • Q: What is an articulated operator? A: He has the possibility of obtaining information and access to information as well as access to others in positions of power.

  • Q: [Didn’t catch question]. A: What I analyzed are the positions around the Agua Zarca contract that takes us to the murder. In relation to that, I analyzed Castillo’s operativity inside the ENEE, the results, and looked at those results in function of his own personal interests. In this manner, the ‘standard model’ that was created occurred in a parallel manner with the bidding process for the contract.

  • Q: The contracts that were approved in 2010, how many were granted to companies that Castillo was part of? Objection

  • Q: Of all the contracts, how many were given to companies that Castillo was part of? A: He’s no in any.

  • Q: If he was in a position of power, why did he not benefit from them? A; The standard model is a distinct element.

  • Q: What were David Castillo’s functions or role inside the ENEE? A: That was outside of my analysis

  • Q: Then what position of power did Castillo have over contracts? A: Castillo intervened in his role as technical assistance in the process to create a standard model that was used for the ENEE contract. This would later serve DESA and other projects. This directly shows that Castillo had direct participation. There is a memorandum that demonstrates this.

  • Q: Who approved the contract, the ENEE board of directors or management? A: The Board of Directors authorized the contracts approved by management.

  • Q: The study you did - what knowledge do you have if it was the board of directors or the intervention commission? A: I didn’t look at those details

  • Q: What role did Castillo play in the board? A: He participated in the meetings where they voted on the contract

  • Q: As an invited individual, what capability did he have? A: It’s a phenomenon that you have to understand in context. If he has access to the process, I read this as proof that he put himself in a key position, in order to receive the contract.

  • Q: What ability did Castillo have to order the Board of Directors to give him the contract? A: I’m not talking about an analysis of giving an order, I’m talking about administering such contract. I emphasize again that several irregularities occurred.

  • Q: What opinions, comments - in a concrete manner - describes Castillo’s participation, specifically in the meeting notes? A: I make an emphasis on the layers of informal and formal actions and how they are expressed in these spaces. In one document, you can see that Castillo directly intervened.

  • Q: What document affirms this? A: A letter that is written by Castillo and signed by [an employee of ENEE but didn’t catch the name]

  • Q: [Didn’t hear question]. A: The memorandum is dated January 15, 2013 and it’s written to Castillo and it’s giving an opinion to him based on something that Castillo’s requested.

  • Q: How can you be sure that Castillo’s requested it? A: Cruz Lanza wrote to David Castillo and it says in the document, “In regards to your memorandum … I respond with the following opinion.” He’s giving an opinion based on a request that Castillo made to the legal adviser

  • Q: In your experience, why was it necessary to create a standard process for contracts? A: The request is in the memorandum on pg. 31. It makes reference to the fact that the company was disqualified from the bidding process - there were other companies also disqualified, and for this reason, they created a parallel process.

  • Q: What participation did the Congress play in the approval of such contracts? A: I focused more on the ratification. The Congress ratified the contracts

  • Q: Why do you say they ratified them when in your analysis, it says the Congress approved them? A: I refer to the more correct term which is ratification. In the same manner, these procedures are outlined in the document published by La Gaceta

  • Q: In your power analysis, why was it necessary for ENEE to go to SERNA and then for the contract to be approved in the Congress? A: In the approval process, various institutions are involved.

  • Q: [Missed questions]. A: I located Castillo as an operator through his position and relationship of power in the institutions. And when I located him inside a network, this means that he cannot act alone - others participate in the process so it’s not just a vertical structure, it’s a more complex, inter-relational relationship.

  • Q: In your presentation on slide 75, you said that Castillo received two salaires? Objection

  • Q: In what months did Castillo work in both institutions? A: I referenced a document emitted by the Honduran Auditing Commission (TSC by it’s Spanish acronym), but I did not go beyond that.

  • Q: How did you verify this in order to conclude what you did? A: I based this on the document from the TSC that says that Castillo worked with the Army in 2006 and then in 2008 in the ENEE as part of the military.

  • Q: On pg. 6, where did yo uget the concept “system crime”? A: I cited the academics that discuss this term

  • Q: This concept - is it a sociological concept or criminal? A: It is based in sociology

  • Q: If you have this knowledge, how would you interpret this criminal system? A: I emphasize two academics because they try to describe criminal phenomenons to support the engagement with the penal system so that there are better tools from a judicial point of view, to understand this type of criminality.

  • Q: What process did the Congress have? A: I cant give an example, the MACCIH is an institution that allows for exceptional interinstitutional coordination. This is an example of exceptionalism

  • Q: Who authorized you to use the legal file xyz (didn’t catch the number)? A: I received it in an email from the court secretary.

  • Q: Why did you take into account other public documents of companies in your analysis? A: Because it’s public information [as in, he didn’t need to get the court’s authorization to use it]

  • Q: Who authorized you to access the Panamanian company registry? A: It’s public