Dominican Republic begins trial in 'Caso Camaleón' corruption case

The Third Collegiate Tribunal of the National District is set to begin the trial for the “Caso Camaleón” (Chameleon Case) this Tuesday. The proceedings involve former Director of the National Institute of Transit and Land Transportation (Intrant), Hugo Beras, businessman José Ángel Gómez Canaán, also known as “Jochi Gómez,” and several other defendants.

The defendants face a wide range of charges, including money laundering, embezzlement, criminal conspiracy, fraud against the State, sabotage, identity theft, high-tech crimes, and weapons law violations. The prosecution alleges that the scheme involved the fraudulent awarding of contracts to modernize the traffic light network in Greater Santo Domingo.

According to the Public Ministry, the corruption scheme centered on Jochi Gómez, who allegedly used companies such as Transcore Latam, Dekolor, PagoRD Xchange, and Aurix to divert public funds and gain control over critical infrastructure, including traffic lights and surveillance systems. Other implicated individuals include former Intrant officials such as Pedro Vinicio Padovani Báez and Samuel Gregorio Baquero Sepúlveda.