Argentina begins inquiries into COVID-19 ‘VIP Vaccine’ scandal

Argentine Federal Justice will begin a series of interrogations starting October 2 regarding the ‘Vacunatorio VIP’ case, involving the irregular access to COVID-19 vaccines during the administration of Alberto Fernández.

Judge María Eugenia Capuchetti, at the request of prosecutor Eduardo Taiano, has summoned 34 individuals to testify at the Comodoro Py courts. The proceedings are scheduled to run through December 9. The investigation targets former officials, union leaders, legislators, and businesspeople who allegedly bypassed official priority protocols to receive doses at the Ministry of Health, Posadas Hospital, or private residences.

Among those summoned are former President Eduardo Duhalde, his wife Hilda ‘Chiche’ Duhalde, journalist Horacio Verbitsky, and deputies Jorge Taiana and Eduardo Valdés. The prosecutor has charged the participants with ‘peculado’ (misappropriation of public funds/assets), arguing that those who received the vaccines contributed substantially to the crime by accepting doses despite knowing they were not part of the authorized priority groups during a period of scarcity.