Argentine judge clears Milei and 10 others in LIBRA case, finding no 'criminally relevant deception'

An Argentine federal judge on Friday dismissed the criminal case against President Javier Milei over his promotion of the LIBRA token, ruling that the events under investigation "do not fit any legal offense" for Milei and 10 others.

Judge Marcelo Martínez de Giorgi's 60-page ruling clears Milei, his sister Karina Milei, who is the presidency's secretary general, and nine others. Among them are Hayden Davis, the American who described himself as LIBRA's "launch adviser," crypto lobbyist Mauricio Novelli, and Julian Peh of KIP Protocol.

The ruling follows prosecutor Eduardo Taiano's request for the dismissal of the case. None of the 11 people investigated was called to give a formal statement as a suspect in the case.

Milei posted about LIBRA on X on the evening of Feb. 14, 2025, before the token spiked in value, then deleted the post following the token's sudden crash. Milei later said he had acted in good faith. The token's market cap topped $4.5 billion before falling about 95% mere hours after the token's rise, and eight wallets tied to the team cashed out $107 million, according to onchain analysts.

Judge finds no 'criminally relevant deception'

The judge sided with the prosecutor, Taiano, finding that the evidence did not establish "criminally relevant deception" by Milei or his co-defendants. Milei's office "could have conferred particular repercussion and visibility" on the token, he wrote in Spanish. But the notoriety of whoever promotes an asset and the publicity around a launch "do not, in themselves, amount to a fraudulent scheme," the judge found. 

The judge also examined a note recovered from Novelli's phone that, according to El Destape's reporting in March, described three payments totaling $5 million. Forensic analysis confirmed that the note had existed in Apple Notes but could not establish that it had been sent to Davis or anyone else, the judge wrote. Investigators also found deleted chats with a contact saved as "Karina Milei RRPP" and records of calls between Milei and Novelli but could not determine their content.

On Karina Milei, the judge found that the only paper trail linking her to Davis was the presidency's record of her authorizing his entry to the Casa Rosada, the Argentine president's seat of government, on July 16, 2024. That authorization, "considered in isolation, does not demonstrate the existence of an illicit agreement," the judge wrote. Separately, he cited an internal disciplinary investigation that found an employee of DATIP, the prosecutors' forensic unit, had improperly accessed reserved case files, some of which leaked to the press.

Milei cheers while opposition alleges a cover-up

Milei cheered the dismissal of the case with an X post on Friday evening. "Justice has once again put things in their place, exposing the TREMENDOUS political and media operation whose sole aim was to damage the presidential office for coup-mongering political ends," Milei wrote. 

Maximiliano Ferraro, the opposition deputy who chaired Congress' LIBRA investigative commission, responded to the ruling with a video posted to X. "We are facing a clear planned judicial operation of cover-up and impunity for Milei and all the organizers of the scam," Ferraro wrote in Spanish. 

"They never explained, nor were they ever required to explain, the dozens of meetings that $LIBRA's promoters held at the Casa Rosada and the Quinta de Olivos, the cryptocurrency transactions before and after meeting with the president of the nation, and the calls by Milei ... on the day of the scam," Ferraro said in the video.

The Ferraro-led commission's report, released in November 2025, found that Milei had provided "essential collaboration" to the project. Judge Martínez de Giorgi's ruling does not mention it.

Plaintiffs seek path to appeal

Taiano is not expected to appeal the ruling, per Perfil, and no private plaintiffs remain in the case. In July, at the request of Novelli's lawyers, Martínez de Giorgi removed five investors who had joined as plaintiffs from the case. Appeals judges Mariano Llorens and Pablo Bertuzzi upheld that on Sept. 4, writing that LIBRA buyers "voluntarily assumed the risks inherent in that type of purchase."

The investors have since gone to the Federal Criminal Cassation Court, according to La Política Online, asking to be added back to the case. If that court reinstates them, they could appeal Friday's dismissal.

On July 15, 12 days after the plaintiffs were removed, Milei and Justice Minister Juan Bautista Mahiques signed a decree naming Martínez de Giorgi's wife, Ana María Cristina Juan, to a federal court, Infobae reported. The Senate had approved Juan's nomination before the decree was signed.

Opposition lawmakers, including Unión por la Patria deputy Sabrina Selva, questioned the appointment in their criticisms of Friday's ruling, per Ámbito. 

The Block has reached out to the Office of the President and to representatives for Davis for comment.