Argentina's top criminal court rejects vice president's attempt to throw out bribery case

FILE- In this July 31, 2014, file photo, Argentina's Vice President Amado Boudou gestures to supporters before the speech of Argentine President Cristina Fernandez at Casa Rosada Presidential Palace in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Argentina's highest tribunal confirmed on Thursday, June 25, 2015, bribery charges against Boudou. If found guilty, the vice president could face prison and be barred for life from public office. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano, File) (The Associated Press)
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – Argentina's highest criminal court has rejected attempts by the country's vice president to throw out a bribery case against him.
The Federal Chamber of Criminal Appeals on Thursday confirmed the case against Vice President Amando Boudou. The decision will send Boudou's case to trial, which would likely be scheduled for next year.
While heading the Economy Ministry in 2010, Boudou allegedly instructed the South American nation's tax bureau to give the Ciccone printing house an exceptional moratorium to refinance debts amid a bankruptcy.
Boudou has said that he is innocent and that he is being persecuted by political opponents. He has continued in his post, but is not running for any office during the national elections in October.