Trial Begins Against Military For Executions In Nuevo Laredo: Tamaulipas

"Char" for  Borderland Beat 

This article was translated and reposted from PROCESO 

Of the 16 military personnel directly involved in the events, the Attorney General's Office indicted only seven.

NUEVO LAREDO, Tamps. (apro) - Seven Special Operations soldiers were charged for the extrajudicial execution of five civilians, which occurred on May 18 in this border city, informed the Human Rights Committee of Nuevo Laredo (CDHNL).

Of the 16 soldiers directly involved in the events, the Attorney General's Office charged only seven, among them Infantry Lieutenant José Luis "N", who is accused of homicide with advantage and against the administration of justice.

In the same indictment hearing held this Monday, soldiers Armando "N", Benito "N", Ángel "N", Filiberto "N", Carlos "N" and Julián "N" were also charged with aggravated homicide and unlawful exercise of public service, according to judicial file 203/2023.

The facts were exposed by a security camera located at the back of a shopping center in the Los Encinos neighborhood, which captured the moment in which the murdered men first crashed into a perimeter fence, while escaping in an armored van.

Already unarmed and subdued, they were all handcuffed, blindfolded, and shot by the military, who then faked a confrontation, which exposed their "arbitrary action and violation of human rights," according to the CDHNL, an organization presided over by Raymundo Ramos.

Once they were dead, those shot were given weapons.

Although there was excessive use of force, the FGR did not charge the military with this crime, according to the Neolared Committee.

The victims were identified as José Ángel Moreno Pool, Edgar Chavarría Rico, Jorge Antonio Colector Pineda, José Isabel Rivera Vega and Clinton Alex Blucha Pérez.

The initial hearing, conducted by Control Judge Eduardo Javier Saenz Torres, was held at the Federal Criminal Justice Center of Tamaulipas, located in Reynosa, and was witnessed by the victims' families via videoconference.

The accused soldiers and their defense followed the proceedings remotely, from the facilities of the Military Court of Execution and Sentences, attached to the First Military Region, located in Mexico City.

The defense of the seven accused asked the judge to extend the constitutional term to provide evidence in their favor, so the hearing was scheduled to continue on Wednesday, October 4 at 4:15 pm.

The CDHNL concludes: "In the continuation of the hearing, the legal advisors of the families of the victims will request the judge that the 16 military personnel currently detained for crimes committed in the judicial order be charged with crimes against the administration of justice, concealment, and homicide in degree of criminal co-participation, among others, and not only the seven that the FGR accredited".

Source: PROCESO

NUEVO LAREDO, TAMAULIPAS