El Salvador's Supreme Court has ruled that defendant Oscar A. Safie does not have to pay a $30 million judgment issued by a Miami-Dade circuit judge

Mogul needn't pay Miami-Dade settlement, Salvador court rules -El Salvador's Supreme Court has ruled that a wealthy defendant does not have to pay a $30 million judgment issued by a Miami-Dade circuit judge.
By Gerardo Reyes

The Supreme Court of El Salvador has ruled that Oscar Antonio Safie Sacarias, one of the richest and most influential men in El Salvador, does not have to pay a $30 million judgment ordered by a Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge.

The Salvadoran ruling also covers several of Safie's family members, and has been met by accusations of manipulation and favoritism.

In the United States, warrants have been issued for the arrest of Safie and the family members.

They are accused of being in contempt of the Miami-Dade court, and they could face perjury charges for saying they had no bank accounts in the United States, according to court documents obtained by El Nuevo Herald.

Safie is a Salvadoran media and textile mogul.

He owns of one of the most prominent hotels in El Salvador's capital, San Salvador. And he is the first cousin of El Salvador's attorney general, Felix Garrid Safie.

In October 2006, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Mindy S. Glazer ordered the Safie business group to pay $30 million to Valat International Holding, an Irish financial firm that had arranged through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to purchase and restructure the debt of the failed Hamilton Bank.

In 2004, Valat sued three companies owned by Safie -- El Salvador Networks, Rayones de El Salvador and Hilanderias de Exportacion -- after they stopped making interest payments on a line of credit and failed to make good on two other lines of credit.

Valat sued in Miami because, it argued, Safie's business group held bank accounts in the United States. Safie's companies denied this, and their attorneys tried to settle the dispute in El Salvador.

In September 2006, Glazer ruled against the three Salvadoran companies, Safie, his wife, Leyla Emilia, his son and Beatriz Eugenia Safie, who signed personal guarantees for the funds.

According to Miami court documents, the defendants failed to appear in court and refused to cooperate with the proceedings. This led to the arrest warrants being issued.

Valat attorney Leo de la Peña said Safie used his influence and money to ''manipulate the court'' in El Salvador, but provided no details of the alleged manipulation.

In its 2 ½-page decision, the Salvadoran court said the Miami-Dade ruling was invalid because it failed to provide a recourse for Safie and his co-defendants to appeal. However, documents presented by the Miami attorneys for Valat showed that the case had already been appealed, and that the award was upheld.

''The argument is false and shameless,'' de la Peña said.

The Salvadoran Supreme Court justice for civil matters, Ulises Guzman, told El Nuevo Herald he was surprised that his colleagues had ruled in his absence.

''I'm finding out from you guys. I'm the first one surprised. That case should have lasted a few more weeks. I thought there were still more discussions to occur,'' he said Monday.

Guzman said he was traveling abroad Oct. 16, the date of the ruling.

None of the other Salvadoran justices were available for comment.

Valat said it planned to appeal the ruling in El Salvador, and that it would provide evidence that the Florida ruling was final and that no appeals were pending in the United States.

Publisehed in El Nuevo Herald 12/Nov/2008

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