Judge recuses himself from Chevron case in Ecuador
By JEANNETH VALDIVIESO
QUITO, Ecuador
The Ecuadorean judge presiding over a $27 billion environmental lawsuit against Chevron recused himself Friday amid an investigation into allegations of wrongdoing.
Earlier this week, Chevron released three video recordings in which provincial Judge Juan Evangelista Nunez allegedly told two businessmen -- an Ecuadorean with ties to Chevron, Diego Borja, and an American businessman, Wayne Hansen -- that he had already made up his mind to rule against the company.
Nunez denies the allegations, saying the tape was "edited and manipulated," but told The Associated Press that he is stepping down to facilitate the government's investigation.
Ecuadorean Attorney General Washington Pesantez told a news conference Friday that he personally asked the judge to recuse himself to avoid further delays in the trial and stop what he said he suspects may be the company's efforts to discredit the court's eventual ruling.
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Chevron officials deny the company paid for the videos or sent its own employees to record them, and insist they don't know why the men made the recordings or turned them over to the company. But they acknowledge that the Ecuadorean who appears in the recording is a former contractor for Chevron.
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9AGT8QG0.htm