The criminal chamber of Colombia’s Supreme Court began preliminary investigations Wednesday into the alleged fraud which occured in the congressional elections in March, reports El Espectador.
Officials involved in the investigation hope to determine whether seats gained in the elections were obtained through corrupt means and whether criminal charges need to be made.
Allegations were made following the March elections that voting irregularities took place, especially in the departments of Antioquia, Choco, Valle, and Atlantico.
According to reports, several procedural irregularities had been signaled, with the most common being discrepancies between the number of ballots counted and the number of voters registered and marked as present.
Authorities in the department of Choco reported a number of voting irregularities during the electoral process, including instances of one official getting caught putting votes into a ballot-box and the sister of a congressman being arrested by Choco police for carrying over $37,000 on the day of the congressional election.