The Panamanian Institute of Sports (Pandeportes) has lodged a series of formal criminal complaints alleging a multi million dollar fraud scheme involving abandoned sports facilities. Officials filed the complaints with the Public Ministry between April and December 2025, targeting four specific projects originally contracted between 2018 and 2019. These projects, initially valued at $9.7 million, ballooned to over $14.3 million through contract modifications while showing little to no physical progress, according to institute audits.
Current Pandeportes director Miguel Ordóñez presented the complaints, which detail a consistent pattern of advanced payments, missed deadlines, and unfinished work. The allegations center on suspected peculation (misappropriation of public funds) to the detriment of the state. The contracts were awarded during the administration of former President Juan Carlos Varela but were modified extensively under his successor, Laurentino Cortizo, when the alleged irregularities accumulated.
“We have a duty to pursue every avenue to recover these public funds and hold those responsible accountable,” Ordóñez stated. [Translated from Spanish]
The Ministry of Public (Public Ministry of Panama) has now initiated investigations based on the evidence provided. These cases highlight systemic issues in public contracting and oversight, with millions in taxpayer money paid for facilities that communities never received.
Pattern of Abandoned Projects and Unreturned Funds
Audits conducted by the new Pandeportes administration revealed a troubling template across the four denounced projects. Each contract involved advance payments of up to 20 percent disbursed to contractors. Work subsequently stalled or was completely abandoned. Even in cases where contracts were administratively canceled, the advanced funds were not returned to the National Treasury.
The projects under scrutiny include a synthetic field at the Estela Sierra school in Arraiján, the Rico Cedeño stadium in Chitré, a sports complex in Las Palmas, Veraguas, and a baseball field in San Lorenzo, Chiriquí. The combined cost overrun approached 47 percent above the original contracted amounts. This was achieved through multiple addendums that extended deadlines and increased budgets while delivering minimal tangible results.
Ghost Field in Arraiján Shows Zero Percent Progress
A stark example is the synthetic field project for the Estela Sierra school. Eight years after its 2018 award, the site remains an empty lot. The contract was granted to Consorcio PMES, S.A. y Asociados for $555,263 with an eight-month execution period. Pandeportes paid an advance of over $111,000 as stipulated.
Today, the project officially shows zero percent physical completion. A review of public records indicates that the companies involved, PMES and Topoingeniería S.A., were both suspended by Panama’s tax authority in 2023 for delinquency. The connection to the Cortizo administration emerged through corporate records showing attorney Nadia del Río Fernández acted as ad hoc president for Topoingeniería in 2015 to update its legal representation.
“My intervention was strictly formal and punctual, limited to a single act to update the company’s legal representation,” Del Río stated through her lawyer, Marcela Araúz. She asserted she had no ongoing professional link to the company and was unaware of the Pandeportes contract. [Translated from Spanish]
Del Río previously served as an executive assistant to then-President Cortizo at the Ministry of the Presidency. Her legal team emphasized she was never a partner, permanent director, or beneficiary of the company and did not participate in public contracts.
Links to Broader Corruption Investigations
The Pandeportes complaints intersect with wider corruption probes shaking Panama. One former Pandeportes director from the relevant period, Héctor Brands, is currently detained on unrelated charges of unjust enrichment and money laundering. An audit connected to his case found approximately $28 million in unexplained deposits across bank accounts linked to him.
This scandal unfolds as Panama’s judicial system seeks stronger tools against organized crime networks that infiltrate public works. Some legal experts have pointed to the potential need for statutes similar to the powerful rico cede laws used in the United States to dismantle criminal enterprises. The current cases demonstrate how complex schemes can divert funds through layers of companies and contracts.
Three different directors led Pandeportes during the Cortizo administration: Eduardo Cerda, Héctor Brands, and Luis Arce. The current director, Miguel Ordóñez, who took office under President José Gabriel Carrizo, has made investigating these old contracts a priority. His actions signal a new approach to transparency and accountability within the institution.
Legal and Administrative Repercussions Ahead
The Public Ministry’s investigation will now determine whether there is sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges for peculation. This offense involves public officials or contractors misappropriating state funds entrusted to them. The complaints provide a detailed paper trail of contracts, addendums, payment orders, and inspection reports showing lack of progress.
These cases also raise questions about administrative oversight. Why were multiple addendums and additional funds approved for projects with clear performance failures? Why were advance payments not recovered through guarantees or bonds when contracts were canceled? The answers may point to failures within the procurement and supervisory chains of command during both the Varela and Cortizo governments.
As Panama’s judiciary modernizes, including moves to juan carlos varela and other technologies, handling complex financial crime cases remains a critical challenge. The outcome of the Pandeportes investigations will test the system’s capacity to untangle sophisticated fraud. For the communities in Arraiján, Chitré, Veraguas, and Chiriquí, the resolution promises either long overdue justice or another chapter in a saga of broken promises. Their playing fields, paid for by the public, remain ghosts on paper and empty spaces on the ground.