The former president of El Salvador Elías Antonio Saca, who governed the country between 2004 and 2009, has left prison after completing a ten-year sentence for corruption offenses. This was confirmed by the Salvadoran Public Prosecutor's Office, which has underscored that the assets seized from the former head of state will remain in the hands of the authorities.
The Public Ministry has indicated that the judicial process against Saca, arrested in 2018, now concludes with his release once the sentence imposed for the diversion and laundering of 300 million dollars (about 266 million euros) from state resources during his administration has been served.
In this context, the agency has specified that "The Public Prosecutor's Office clarifies that the assets, companies, properties, vehicles and other properties subject to state measures will continue under the custody of the Salvadoran State, in accordance with the applicable legal and judicial provisions".
At the same time, the institution has indicated that it detected an alleged plan "attributed to the then attorney general Douglas Arquímedes Meléndez Ruiz", which "contemplated legal mechanisms aimed at allowing former president Saca to regain his freedom before fully serving the ten-year prison sentence, even in a period shorter than half of the imposed sentence".
According to the version offered, "Said plan was dismantled by the current administration of the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic, which adopted the corresponding measures to prevent it from materializing", before reaffirming its "commitment" to "legality, transparency and the defense of the interests of the Salvadoran State".
Saca received in September 2018 a sentence of ten years in prison, after having been detained on October 30, 2016 during his son's wedding. The former ruler reached an agreement with the Justice system to undergo a summary trial and obtain sentence reductions in exchange for admitting the charges.