Former La Paz councillor accused of inciting crime to be released due to low penalty
Wilma Alanoca was charged with public instigation to commit crime, an offence carrying minimum penalties that do not permit preventive detention.
Former La Paz councillor accused of inciting crime to be released due to low penalty
The former municipal official Wilma Alanoca faces charges of publicly instigating the commission of crimes, an accusation that, owing to its reduced legal penalty, does not permit her to be held in preventive detention. This was established by the Public Ministry upon determining that the conditions of article 233 of the Code of Criminal Procedure were met to impose a restrictive measure other than imprisonment.
Alanoca was taken into custody by two plainclothes female officers on Tuesday, moments after giving statements to the press. Her legal representative, Marcelo Galván, filed a habeas corpus petition arguing that his client's detention in the cells of the FELCC lacked legal foundation, as there was no formal complaint or flagrant crime that justified the deprivation of her liberty.
The lawyer characterised the fiscal's hypothesis as disproportionate. In his view, equating a media interview with terrorist acts or criminal instigation would make any person who expresses views publicly—from columnists to academics—a target for arrest warrants.
The criminal statute that defines this conduct—article 130 of the Criminal Code—provides for a sentence of between thirty days and one year. Given that the penalty limits fall below the threshold that enables provisional detention, the defence is confident that the guarantees judge will order her release once the corresponding hearing is held.
Previously, the Vice-Minister of Interior, Hernán Paredes, had linked the former councillor to the circle of former president Evo Morales, identifying her as the political operator of the ex-president in the city of La Paz during recent protests.
Galván also denounced the ambiguity in the classification of the restriction: the authorities did not clarify whether Alanoca was detained, arrested or simply apprehended. This confusion gave rise to multiple petitions for the release of the accused.
Information published by El Deber
Source: El Deber