Panama’s Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Electoral Commission to lift the immunity from prosecution that former President Ricardo Martinelli enjoys as leader of his party so he can be prosecuted for alleged acts of corruption during his 2009-2014 administration.

The Electoral Commission confirmed to Efe that it received the Supreme Court’s request.

Panama’s high court announced on Jan. 28 that all nine of its members had voted to hear a case against Martinelli for “alleged crimes against the public administration.”

The Supreme Court wants to examine Martinelli’s possible connection to alleged overpayments for food bought through the government’s National Assistance Plan, or PAN, the focus of a number of ongoing corruption probes.

PAN former director Giacomo Tamburrelli – currently under house arrest – identified Martinelli as the person responsible for the signing of a $45 million contract to buy the food, which was intended for public school cafeterias.

The whereabouts of Martinelli, a 62-year-old business mogul, remains unknown since he was last seen in Miami.

The former president says he is the victim of “political persecution” directed by his successor, Juan Carlos Varela, who served as Martinelli’s vice president.

Varela rejects the allegation.