Franklin Durán, a Venezuelan businessman and former partner of Guido Antonini Wilson, who is a US government key witness in the case of the USD 800,000-filled suitcase, is still waging a legal battle with the US prosecutors who charged Durán with the crime of spying.

Durán's stance is different from that of the other three defendants in the scandal of the cash-filled suitcase that was confiscated from Antonini Wilson in Argentinean airport of Aeroparque last August 4, as he tried to smuggle the money in Argentina.

Far from calming things down, Durán is disclosing more information on who's who in the scandal where Venezuelan and Argentinean officials are apparently involved, Argentinean newspaper La Nación reported.

On July 7, federal prosecutor John Shipley mentioned the role "Venezuelan authorities" played in the suitcase scandal when replying to Edward Shohat, the lawyer representing Durán in the case. Shohat filed a motion rejecting a political bias of the case and stating that the charges against his client were "vague" and unconstitutional.

Shohat added that two other defendants, namely Carlos Kauffmann, a former Durán's partner, and lawyer Moisés Maionica, were more than willing to incriminate Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in the scandal as long as they smear Durán, have their sentence reduced and avoid deportation to Venezuela once they are released from jail.

According to the US prosecutor, it was Durán who told Antonini Wilson during a meeting in Miami before his detention that "Venezuelan authorities did not trust Antonini and were suspecting that Guido Antonini was negotiating with US authorities."

Translated by Gerardo Cárdenas

Read Also: El Universal's Special Feature on the Suitcase Scandal