Mexico: Probe Against Ex-President Enrique Pena Nieto Continues After Money Laundering Accusations

Mexico's Attorney General's Office is spearheading a general investigation against former President Enrique Pena Nieto after accusations of money laundering emerged in the past few weeks.

Last July, a financial probe took place after the former president was found to have received millions of dollars from a relative in Mexico. He is now living in Madrid, Spain after governing the country from 2012 to 2018.

Pena Nieto cleared himself of any wrongdoing in a statement published on his Twitter account, but Mexico's attorney general still pushed through with the investigation.

Mexico Former President Enrique Pena Nieto's Money Laundering Charges

The Attorney General's Office has officially opened "several lines" of investigation against Enrique Pena Nieto, the Associated Press reported.

According to a statement from the Attorney General's Office, the former president is under investigation for election-related crimes tied to company, money laundering, and illicit enrichment.

Although he was not explicitly named on the statement released because of Mexican policies in place, someone from the prosecutor's office confirmed that "Enrique' P," who was listed on the release, was, in fact, the former president.

The investigation came after he was accused of handling and receiving illegally obtained money from someone in the country.

Last month, Mexico's Financial Investigation Unit (FIU) launched a similar probe on his "unexplained enrichment," after detecting a scheme that gave Pena Nieto "economic benefits" of around $1.3 million.

Initial investigations found that the money was wire transferred separately three times to the ex-president in Madrid, Spain in August and October 2021.

The money was reportedly sent to Pena Nieto, who resides in Spain, from a blood relative in Mexico in the form of three separate wire transfers.

"In addition, the former president has corporate links to two companies... in which we observed fiscal and financial irregularities," Mexico's Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) director Pablo Gomez Alvarez said last month.

Enrique Pena Nieto earlier tweeted that he obtained the funds legally.

Mexico Attorney General Names Company Linked to Enrique Pena Nieto's Money Laundering Scandal

The Attorney General's announcement on Tuesday did not provide additional details about the case. However, it did name a company linked to Enrique Pena Nieto's money laundering issue.

The three separate wire transfers to the former president did not only come from a relative in Mexico. According to reports, it also came from OHL, a Spanish construction company with a subsidiary in Mexico receiving government contracts.

As early as 2016, OHL was flagged by the National Banking and Stock Commission for irregularities amounting to more than $4 million. They were also involved in a corruption scandal related to highway contracts in the country.

Meanwhile, no charges have been filed yet against the former president. But should there be, The New York Times reported that it would be an "unprecedented" step for the country as many leaders have already been accused of corruption, but no one has been put on trial yet.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Ivan Korrs

WATCH: Mexico: Attorney General's Office Has Opened an Investigation Against Enrique Peña Nieto - From TeleSUR