Former Pemex Director Emilio Lozoya. Photo: Google

By KELIN DILLON

On Wednesday, Nov. 3, former CEO of Mexico’s state-owned oil company Petróleos Mexicanos  (Pemex) Emilio Ricardo Lozoya Austin went to court for his role in the Odebrecht case, an international corruption scheme in which Lozoya allegedly received $10 million in bribes for his participation, to request an extension on his lawyers’ investigation and ended up having his bail revoked.

Lozoya arrived at the Federal Criminal Justice Center of Mexico’s North Prison shortly after 9 a.m., with the hearing commencing soon after at 10 a.m.

While the  Attorney General’s Office (FGR), Pemex and the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) recommended against giving Lozoya extra time to compile evidence, presiding Judge José Artemio Zúñiga granted the disgraced Pemex boss an additional month to close his complementary investigation into the scheme as per his lawyers’ request, citing his right to due process. 

The FGR then made a last minute request to change Lozoya’s previously given conditional release into preventative detention (arrest without bail) due to his potential flight risk, a decision which the judge agreed with after reviewing Lozoya’s situation.

During his own chance to speak, Lozoya pled not guilty to the charges brought against him.