Businessman Alberto Scuncio filed an 852-million-peso lawsuit against the Municipality of Coronel this week, alleging that the city’s mismanagement of a commercial tax dispute caused severe damage to his professional reputation.
The litigation stems from a 2018 decision by the municipal council to retroactively reduce a bottling company's commercial license debt from 1.1 billion pesos to 100 million pesos. Scuncio, the owner of the firm, argues that local officials initially calculated the tax debt incorrectly and subsequently framed the reduction as a political "pardon" or "perdonazo."
Juan Pablo Lorenzini, the attorney representing Scuncio, said the municipality’s persistent negligence forced the legal action. He claimed the city’s public framing of the settlement unfairly tarnished his client’s name.
“As this was presented publicly as a pardon, affecting our client's reputation, we decided to file this claim for damages,” Lorenzini said. “There was a persistent negligence by the municipality. First, they applied a tax that did not correspond, and then they presented the settlement as a pardon, once again tarnishing Mr. Scuncio’s good name.”
Criminal investigation looms
The civil lawsuit coincides with a separate criminal investigation led by the State Defense Council (CDE). The CDE has accused Mayor Boris Chamorro, the city’s former legal chief, and four council members of fraud against the state regarding the same tax reduction deal.
Those officials are scheduled to face formal charges in court next month. Despite the criminal proceedings targeting the municipality, Lorenzini maintains that his client is the victim of administrative incompetence rather than a participant in any wrongdoing.
“It seems like a mistake, but the Prosecutor's Office has the obligation to investigate,” Lorenzini said. “It does not complicate us that the Prosecutor's Office carries out the investigation because it will end up determining that there was no type of fraud against the treasury.”
Lorenzini predicted the criminal case against the mayor would eventually be dropped by the Public Ministry for lack of evidence. In the meantime, he said, his legal team remains focused on the civil suit to prove that the municipality’s public handling of the debt caused measurable financial and reputational harm to Scuncio.
