Corruption and money laundering can lead to up to 30 years in prison, warns Yeni Berenice

Santo Domingo. – Attorney General of the Republic, Yeni Berenice Reynoso, warned that officials and individuals involved in cases of administrative corruption and money laundering could face sentences of up to 30 years in prison, due to the accumulation of sanctions contemplated in the new Penal Code of the Dominican Republic. During a conference given at the National Institute for Technical Professional Training (INFOTEP), Reynoso explained that the new legal framework toughens the penalties for crimes that affect public patrimony, establishing cumulative punishments when several infractions occur.

“The Penal Code brings the accumulation, and if this crime here enters into accumulation with money laundering and enters into accumulation with the figure of association of wrongdoers, it can reach up to 30 years,” the prosecutor pointed out.

He explained that the accumulation of penalties applies when a defendant commits more than one crime related to the irregular handling of public funds, which aggravates the final sanction.

“Because there is an accumulation of penalty: if you committed several crimes, it goes into accumulation,” Reynoso specified.

The prosecutor recalled that the crime of corruption will be considered autonomous under the new Penal Code, which means that any malicious action that affects public assets can be prosecuted without needing to be linked to another crime.

“From the moment the Code comes into effect, it is an autonomous crime. According to article 284, whoever commits any action in a malicious way that affects public patrimony commits the crime of corruption,” he explained.

Reynoso also highlighted that corruption is a predicate offense for money laundering, which implies that if it is proven that a person used illicit money from acts of corruption to acquire goods or properties, they can be charged with money laundering in addition to the main offense.

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The official recalled that, in addition to custodial sentences, those convicted of corruption face fines equivalent to double the amount stolen and permanent disqualification from holding public office. “The one who commits that crime will never be able to work in public administration,” he emphasized. Reynoso concluded by stating that the Dominican Republic today has one of the most rigorous systems of sanctions against corruption in the region, and reiterated that the Public Ministry “will continue to act firmly to protect public patrimony.”