Two unexplained bundles: Police deny theories about Félix Plaud's murder
Puerto Rico Police have not confirmed the version circulating on social media about two individuals who allegedly entered Plaud's apartment and took away two bundles.
Puerto Rico Police dismiss complaint about entry to Félix Plaud's apartment
Two individuals who allegedly entered an apartment where former activist Félix Plaud de Choudens used to stay overnight and removed two bundles of unknown contents: this is the most recent version circulating on social media regarding the case. According to elnuevodia.com, Puerto Rico Police have not corroborated this account or any of the multiple "conspiracy theories" that have proliferated since the criminal case erupted.
Inspector José Torres Ruiz, director of the Criminal Investigation Unit (CIC) in Guayama, was categorical when asked about the alleged incident. "Up to this moment, as far as I have been informed, I have no information about that," he stated. "There is no complaint filed," he added.
Torres Ruiz emphasised that the investigation remains active and that authorities are verifying in a responsible manner each piece of information that has emerged, in coordination with the Prosecutor's Office. He noted that there is no formal report of the alleged entry of individuals to the apartment, so this version remains in the realm of speculation.
The chronology of the triple crime
The alleged entry to the apartment would have occurred on the night of last Friday, the same day that Plaud de Choudens, 45, was reported missing and found dead on Laporte Avenue, in the Borinquen neighbourhood of Guayama, near a Total petrol station. That same day, criminal lawyer Luis A. Quiñones González was shot dead on Las Américas Avenue in Ponce, as he was leaving the Court.
Both crimes were confessed by bail bondsman William Noel Rivera Sánchez, who was subsequently found dead in his residence in the Useras sector of Santa Isabel, in circumstances that Police provisionally classify as suicide, although the final determination remains under investigation.
According to the Uniformed Police's preliminary reconstruction, the sequence of events began on Thursday night, when Plaud de Choudens was with a friend at the Tazza D'Oro establishment in Guayama. Following a telephone call, the former activist met with Rivera Sánchez, boarded his vehicle and left the place. That would have been the last time someone saw him alive. Police indicate that Plaud de Choudens would have been murdered that same night in a field in Guayama.
The bail bondsman films two videos and flees to Ponce
Rivera Sánchez recorded a first video confessing to the murder of Plaud de Choudens, but did not publish it immediately. The following day, he travelled to Ponce, where he shot at lawyer Quiñones González as the latter was leaving the Judicial Centre and driving behind his wife's vehicle, also a lawyer. The woman observed the attack in the rear-view mirror and attempted to repel the assault. Quiñones González was taken to Dr. Pila Hospital, where he died.
Following the second crime, Rivera Sánchez recorded a new video in which he confessed to both murders and explained the motive: an economic dispute stemming from having invested all his savings in establishing two cannabis dispensaries. He subsequently uploaded both recordings to his social media accounts and fled back to Santa Isabel.
Forced entry and three licensed weapons
Superintendent Joseph González Falcón revealed on Friday that Police had received information that Rivera Sánchez was at his residence and had expressed intentions of taking his own life. A unit was despatched to the location immediately. Upon receiving no response, the rescue unit was called in, which carried out a forced entry to the property.
"Once inside, our officers found Rivera Sánchez dead in the apartment's living room," González Falcón stated at a press conference at the Hato Rey headquarters. Three weapons were recovered at the scene, for which the bail bondsman held a licence. His motor vehicle was also found with bullet impacts.
González Falcón explained the relevance of that finding: "According to preliminary information, the wife of lawyer Quiñones González had fired several shots in the direction of the aggressor while fleeing the scene in Ponce. We are examining this evidence to determine scientifically whether the impacts found on the vehicle are related to the shots fired during that incident."
Uncertainty about the bundles
The version of the two bundles takes on particular interest, according to elnuevodia.com, because of its temporal coincidence with the murders. However, whilst social media fuel multiple theories about new motives and additional elements of the case, authorities insist that none of these versions have been officially confirmed.
Torres Ruiz did not rule out that the investigation could lead to new lines of work, but reiterated that any information that emerges must be verified before Police make any public statement regarding it. The case, which has shaken Puerto Rico, remains open.
Source: Google News PR — Crime