The Penta case (or Penta-SQM, since the two cases are related) is a criminal case brought against Grupo Penta (or Empresas Penta), a Chilean holding company, and employees of the Chilean National Tax System (SII). Key employees of the firm have been convicted of committing tax fraud by creating fake invoices in the National Tax System (SII). These funds were then directed to the political campaigns of mainly UDI (far right wing) politicians as campaign contributions. Several Penta employees, as some of their family members, have been convicted[{{cite web|title=Condenas en fraude al FUT, la hebra que terminó en el caso Penta: 5 años para Iván Álvarez y 4 para contador Díaz|url=http://www.elmostrador.cl/noticias/pais/2015/03/25/condenas-en-fraude-al-fut-la-hebra-que-termino-en-el-caso-penta-5-anos-para-ivan-alvarez-y-4-para-contador-diaz/|website=El Mostrador|date=25 March 2015 |accessdate=23 July 2015}}] of tax evasion, bribery, and money laundering. Both directors of Penta Bank, Carlos Alberto Délano and Carlos Eugenio Lavín, were penalized with paying a fine, spending a few days in a special prison for economic crimes, and attending mandatory ethics classes.[{{cite web|title=The Chilean Spring (Part Three): How the Elite Tricked Us All | url = https://alborada.net/chile-spring-part-three-inequality-elite-corruption/ | website = Alborada | accessdate = 16 November 2021}}]
Update 2 December 2015: The former president of the UDI political party Jovino Novoa is sentenced to 3 years parole (pena remitida) for tax crimes.
Here are the defendants from Penta:
| class="wikitable" |
| Name | position | sentence |
|---|
| Hugo Bravo | general manager | was charged in March{{Year needed|date=May 2018}}[{{cite web|title=Caso Penta: Este miércoles se revisan cautelares de Hugo Bravo y Manuel Antonio Tocornal|url=http://www.theclinic.cl/2015/07/13/caso-penta-este-miercoles-se-revisan-cautelares-de-hugo-bravo-y-manuel-antonio-tocornal/|publisher=The Clinic|accessdate=23 July 2015}}] for money laundering, bribery, and tax fraud. He is currently{{When|date=May 2018}} under house arrest |
| Carlos Alberto Délano | director | charged 7 March 2015 with tax fraud and bribery. Was held and then released. |
| Carlos Eugenio Lavín | director | Spent his 73rd birthday in prison.[{{cite web|title=En prisión: Carlos Eugenio Lavín celebró su cumpleaños número 73 en Capitán Yáber|url=http://www.theclinic.cl/2015/04/20/carlos-lavin-cumpleanos-prision/|website=The Clinic}}] |
| Oscar Buzeta | business development manager | charged with tax crimes[{{cite web|last1=Chaparro|first1=Andrea|last2=Carvajal|first2=Cinthya|title=Penta-SQM: masiva formalización include a ex gerente de Bancard y ex diputado radical|url=http://impresa.elmercurio.com/Pages/NewsDetail.aspx?dt=20-08-2015%200:00:00&dtB=20-08-2015%200:00:00&BodyID=3&PaginaId=13|website=El Mercurio|accessdate=20 August 2015}}] |
Here are the defendants from the SII:
| class="wikitable" |
| Name | position | sentence |
|---|
| Ivan Alvarez | auditor | On March 25, 2015, the court found Ivan guilty and in the holding sentenced him to 5 years of imprisonment; fine in the amount of 1,900 million pesos; and confiscation of an apartment and a car |
| Sergio Diaz | accountant | 4 years imprisonment; 700 million fine; forfeiture of two houses and an apartment. |
| Juan Carlos Prieto | accountant | 5 years of probation, 290 million fine |
| Mitzi Carrasco | accountant | 5 years of probation, 246 million fine[{{cite web|last1=Radic|first1=Sandra|title=Otro coletazo del Caso Penta: SII quiere sacar a la Dirección Santiago Oriente del estado de riesgo vital y apunta a descongestionarla|date=15 June 2015 |url=http://www.elmostrador.cl/mercados/2015/06/15/otro-coletazo-del-caso-penta-sii-quiere-sacar-a-la-direccion-santiago-oriente-del-estado-de-riesgo-vital-y-apunta-a-descongestionarla|publisher=El Mostrador|accessdate=15 June 2015}}] |
| Hernan Diaz | accountant | released |
| Francisco Sivic | accountant | released[{{cite web|last1=Batarce|first1=Catalina|title=Fraude al FUT: este viernes se conocerá la sentencia de tres imputados|url=http://www.latercera.com/noticia/nacional/2015/02/680-617955-9-fraude-al-fut-el-viernes-se-conoce-sentencia-de-tres-imputados.shtml|publisher=La Tercera|accessdate=23 July 2015}}] |
| Horacio Mayquel | accountant | released |
| Orlando Carvajal | accountant | 5 years of probation, $30 million fine |
Here are some of the politicians to whom Penta funneled funds.
| class="wikitable" |
| Name | party | status |
|---|
| Pablo Zalaquett | UDI, former mayor of Santiago | released from house arrest[{{cite web|title=Caso Penta: Corte de Apelaciones revoca arresto domiciliario nocturno a Pablo Zalaquett|url=http://radio.uchile.cl/2015/07/02/caso-penta-corte-de-apelaciones-revoca-arresto-domiciliario-nocturno-de-pablo-zalaquett|publisher=Diario Uchile|accessdate=23 July 2015}}] |
| Iván Morerira | senator (UDI) | no charges[{{cite web|last1=Toro|first1=P.|last2=Matus|first2=J.|title=Fiscalía pide formalizar a 19 personas por casos Penta y SQM|url=http://www.latercera.com/noticia/portada/2015/08/653-643660-9-fiscalia-formalizara-a-19-personas-por-casos-penta-y-sqm.shtml|website=La Tercera}}] |
Others charged:
| class="wikitable" |
| Name | role | status |
|---|
| Pablo Wagner | mining subsecretary under President Piñera | under house arrest[{{cite web|last1=Baeza Palavecino|first1=Angélica|title=Caso Penta: Corte de Apelaciones mantiene arresto domiciliario de Pablo Wagner |url=http://www.latercera.com/noticia/nacional/2015/05/680-628429-9-caso-penta-corte-de-apelaciones-revisa-arresto-domiciliario-de-pablo-wagner.shtml|publisher=La Tercera|accessdate=6 May 2015}}] |