The contracts of the President’s lawyer and his office with the Government; his wife remains in a high position at Aerocivil

The name of the well-known lawyer Pedro Alejandro Carranza Cepeda has been in the spotlight of public opinion in recent weeks due to his mention in the investigation that the Supreme Court is conducting on the former congresswoman of the Historic Pact, Gloria Arizabaleta.

The former president of the Investigation and Accusation Commission of the Chamber is being investigated for alleged extortion, prevarication, influence peddling, and disclosure of secrets, after she sought to suspend President Gustavo Petro for political participation.

Chats revealed communications between Carranza and Arizabaleta about the processes against Petro and against detractors.

Carranza, who also acts as lawyer for Nicolás Petro Burgos –the eldest son of the outgoing president, investigated for money laundering and illicit enrichment- has come forward to give explanations about the matter.

He stated that Arizabaleta asked him to be the bridge between the government and the Accusations Commission and to negotiate the process against the president for violating campaign limits.

But those are not the only clarifications Carranza has made. A week ago, he explained a contract with the Administrative Department of the Presidency (Dapre), awarded on July 25 that lasted until December 31 and which, he says, he rejected after finding an error in the terms.

But EL TIEMPO’s Investigative Unit investigated and established that this is not the only contract that the lawyer or his office have signed with entities of the outgoing government.

A first process dates back to May 8, 2024, when he signed a contract with the National Infrastructure Agency (ANI) for 93 million pesos. Seven months later he became Nicolás Petro’s lawyer.

And there are other contracts. Through his company Grupo Carranza Abril SAS, created in May 2009, of which Carranza and his wife Julieth Mayerly Abril are partners.

In September 2024, the company signed a first contract with the Military Club, for 19 million pesos, for comprehensive strategic advisory services. Four months later, in January 2025, it signed another for 87 million pesos for strategic advice.

At that time, the head of that entity was General (r.) José Henry Pinto, who later moved to the direction of Aerocivil.

Pinto joined the entity in May 2025 and a month later hired Carranza’s partner and wife as an advisor grade 30 with a salary of 9 million pesos per month. Pinto is the same person who admitted to having hired Gabriela Muñoz and her brother, at the request of Liliana Olaya, then counterintelligence coordinator of the National Intelligence Directorate (DNI).

The other contracts of Carranza’s company are from July 2025 and February 2026, also with ANI, when he was already the President’s attorney. The first, for 78 million pesos and the other, for a little more than 187 million 700 thousand pesos.

“I am ANI’s lawyer before being Nicolás and Petro’s lawyer. The first contract I received was as a natural person lawyer and then, as a legal entity, representing as a victim in all Odebrecht cases,” said the criminal lawyer when asked about the matter.

And he added: “The story that I was paid with contracts falls apart and not only that, but it falls apart with our results, since at ANI we have managed to stop dismissals like that of former minister Cecilia Álvarez, we are warning about the statute of limitations in the Andrade case in which we have helped prevent delays and have informed Colombian authorities about the damages and harms done to the country, the opacity in the investigation against Néstor Humberto Martínez”.

Regarding the Military Club, he also said he arrived there before representing the President: “I have been Pinto’s lawyer for many years.”

And he clarified that his fees are paid from the policy that protects high-ranking state officials: “In January of this year I was paid for all the work I did last year.”

And he pointed out that his office has maintained various businesses and that none of his clients, except Ricardo Bonilla, have had any relation with Petro.

“General Pinto took my wife as an advisor and the firm’s contract with the club ended without renewal. My wife has a master’s degree in law, two specializations, and more than 15 years of litigation in major cases. She has nothing to do with Gabriela or Santiago. We are lawyers who work with dedication and loyalty to the country.”

In one of the chats in the possession of the Supreme Court, lawyer Carranza offered Arizabaleta to write the complaint to bring former prosecutor Néstor Humberto Martínez to justice.

(Consult all the articles from EL TIEMPO’s Investigative Unit here)

Regarding this, former prosecutor Martínez assured that Petro has sought to trap him and that this is another chapter. He also said that he will wait for the criminal justice system to qualify lawyer Carranza’s conduct, which could even be classified as usurpation of public function.

INVESTIGATIVE UNIT

u.investigativa@eltiempo.com

@UinvestigativaET

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