American businessmen Raul J Guitierrez and Eduardo Hillman-Waller are next month set to plead guilty to attempting to defraud the State regarding contracts for the TT$1.6 billion Piarco International Airport terminal building project.
By Juhel BrowneHillman-Waller and Guitierrez are scheduled to do so during a change of plea hearing scheduled for November 6, before United States District Judge Paul C Huck in Miami, Florida.
The Express obtained copies of the change of plea notices which all bore Thursday's date, October 19, 2006.
Both men are facing corruption charges before the local courts concerning the airport project.
During the Senate's debate of the 2006/2007 Budget on Wednesday, Attorney General John Jeremie said Guitierrez and Hillman-Waller had agreed to plead guilty before the US courts concerning fraud charges arising out of a Grand Jury investigation into the project.
The Grand Jury indicted Guitierrez and Hillman-Waller, along with several others, including local businessmen Ishwar Galbaransingh and Steve Ferguson.
On Thursday, Opposition Senator Dr Tim Gopeesingh accused Jeremie of having an undue influence over the legal matters in the US concerning the airport project.
Jeremie said he had no such influence and noted he was informed of the upcoming guilty pleas by an Assistant United States Attorney, whom he did not name.
Gutierrez was the president and director of Calmaquip Engineering, which won one of the bids for the airport project. Hillman-Waller was Calmaquip's chief financial officer.
Three other non-Trinidad and Tobago nationals who are defendants in the case are also scheduled to change their pleas at hearings scheduled for next week.
Floridian Rene Diaz DeVillegas and Aruban Richard Lacle are set to plead guilty before Huck on Tuesday.
Floridian Leonardo Arturo Mora-Rodriguez is scheduled to submit his guilty plea on Wednesday.
A source said yesterday that all five accused are now co-operating with US authorities in exchange for reduced sentences.
"They will all enter a plea bargain. They will be implicating all those who are involved," the source said.
The source said that the plea bargains would determine what sentences they serve as part of their agreement with US authorities, while their local co-defendants have not entered into any such plea bargain.
