The Órgano Judicial building in San Miguelito, Panama, on August 15, 2025. Archival judicial illustration for the Pandora case; this photograph does not document the hearing or identify any defendant. Credit: Virpana / Wikimedia Commons / CC0 1.0. CC0 1.0. Photo source.
A Panama appeals court upheld the pretrial detention of former BAC finance executive Arnold Enrique Salgado Galeano on October 27 in the Pandora tax-credit investigation. The decision concerns his custody while the case proceeds; it is not a conviction.
The Superior Appeals Court rejected the defense challenge to the measure imposed on October 6, La Prensa reported. Prosecutor Emeldo Márquez argued that risks to evidence justified continued detention.
Salgado's lawyer, Rafael Baloyes, disputed the allegations and said his client had performed the duties of his banking position, according to La Estrella de Panamá's account of the hearing.
Disputed evidence in Panama's Pandora case
Prosecutors are investigating an alleged scheme involving tax credits and manipulation of the tax authority's e-Tax 2.0 system. Crítica reported that the alleged conduct involves private individuals and tax officials and dates to 2024–2025.
The case includes 22 people facing charges, but that does not mean every allegation or charge in the wider investigation applies identically to Salgado.
At the appeal hearing, prosecutors referred to testimony alleging that Salgado facilitated purchases of illegitimate credits. The defense said the transactions passed through the bank's compliance and legal departments and that the credits appeared valid in the government system.
The parties also disputed the significance of deleted emails. La Estrella reported that Baloyes said the messages had been recovered and did not show criminal conduct. Márquez argued that they showed approval for tax-credit payments.
Those competing accounts are arguments in an ongoing criminal proceeding. They do not establish guilt, and the underlying emails were not available for independent inspection.
Another hearing is scheduled
Márquez said prosecutors would ask a judge to designate the investigation a complex case, seeking additional time for investigative work. La Estrella reported that the hearing was scheduled for October 29 at 2 p.m. at the criminal justice offices in Plaza Ágora.
That application is separate from the October 27 appeal and had not been decided in the reporting reviewed.
BAC has denied participating in the alleged scheme and says it is cooperating with investigators, La Prensa reported. The bank's response and the defense's objections remain central to understanding the allegations.
For now, the confirmed procedural development is that Salgado's detention continues while the investigation and its next scheduled hearing move forward.