Crime against elderly woman in Santa Lucía: defendant released due to lack of evidence
Judge Pablo León ordered the release of Cristian Videla, one of four detained for the murder and robbery of "Lita". The other three remain in preventive detention.
One of four defendants released in elderly Santa Lucía woman's murder case
According to tiempodesanjuan.com, the legal case concerning the homicide and robbery of the retired woman known as "Lita" at her home in Santa Lucía saw a new development on Monday. At a hearing held in the courts, Judge of Guarantees Pablo Leonardo León ordered the immediate release of Cristian Videla, one of four men who had been held in preventive detention in the case.
The measure was requested by the Special Crimes Unit No. 5 itself, headed by prosecutor Sebastián Gómez and assistant prosecutor Agostina Pérez. The Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) based the request on the fact that criminal intelligence operations, data cross-referencing and exhaustive analysis of security cameras in the sector did not make it possible to establish with certainty that Videla had been present at the victim's home or had actively participated in the robbery.
Given this evidentiary scenario, the MPF considered that strict preventive detention should not be maintained and requested its substitution with more moderate coercive measures. The defendant's defence did not oppose the motion, and the magistrate granted conditional release subject to compliance with rules of conduct.
Videla, however, remains formally linked to the criminal proceedings investigating the incident, provisionally classified as robbery followed by death. The mitigation of the precautionary measure applied only to him: the other three co-defendants remain housed in the Provincial Penitentiary Service under preventive detention.
The case generated strong public concern due to the manner in which those responsible acted. According to investigations, the perpetrators looted the retired woman's property over several consecutive days whilst the victim's body remained lifeless inside the home.
Authorities are awaiting the results of genetic testing and comparative DNA studies, which will be decisive in establishing material authorship of the homicide and defining the individual responsibilities of each of those involved.
Source: Google News PR — San Juan