Juan Collado faces tax fraud charges

The Attorney General’s Office is planning to charge lawyer Juan Collado with tax fraud .

Collado already faces organized crime and money laundering charges. A judge bound him over to trial in 2019. Authorities claim the lawyer was part of a money-laundering network that operated through Cajas Libertad.

Today federal prosecutors were expected to formulate the new charges during a hearing; however, a federal judge rescheduled the hearing.

According to lawyer José Javier López, the Attorney General’s Office hasn’t shared information regarding the new case with Collado’s defense. Therefore, the judge rescheduled the hearing for Sunday.

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According to the new investigation, Juan Collado did not pay income tax in 2015 and, now he owes the government MXN 36 million.

Meanwhile, Yadhira Carrillo, Collado’s wife, said the lawyer's health has deteriorated since authorities imprisoned him.

According to the former actress, Collado now suffers from uric acid, arthritis, diabetes, and high cholesterol levels. She said Collado needs urgent medical care.

Juan Collado’s arrest

EL UNIVERSAL reported Collado’s arrest on July 9, 2019.

The Attorney General's Office arrested the lawyer while he was dining at a restaurant in Mexico City. He faces organized crime and money laundering allegations.

Journalist Carlos Loret de Mola claimed the lawyer was detained as a result of a legal process in the state of Querétaro.

It is alleged that the crimes were perpetrated through the creation of shell companies created in the states of Querétaro and Nuevo León.

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During the proceedings, the Attorney General's Office accused Juan Collado of creating four shell companies and simulate the sale of land in Querétaro for $156 million.

According to the attorneys, in 2010, Collado and others created two companies, Operadora Inmobiliaria del Centro and Libertad Sociedad Financiera to simulate financial operations and launder money.

The money was allegedly obtained from the sale of the land in Querétaro but according to the plaintiff, Sergio Bustamante, the land was his and was illegally seized through identity theft, since he never agreed to the sale.

Bustamante filed the lawsuit on June 7 and on July 4, the Financial Intelligence Unit made the investigation official before the Attorney General's Office. It was argued that part of the money obtained from the property sale was used to finance Francisco Domínguez Servién's electoral campaign, who is the current Querétaro governor.

Juan Collado is a prominent lawyer linked to the Mexican political elite. Recently, he handled Enrique Peña Nieto's divorce from actress Angélica Rivera.

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