Judge lifts pre-trial detention for man charged in connection with woman's death found in refrigerator in San Carlos
The Criminal Court of Maldonado lifted the pre-trial detention of W.F., charged in connection with the concealment of the murder of Jessica Paola Rosas. The Public Prosecutor's Office appealed the decision.
Pre-trial detention lifted in case of woman found in refrigerator in San Carlos
The 4th Criminal Court of Maldonado lifted the pre-trial detention of W.F., charged with alleged concealment of the homicide of Jessica Paola Rosas, 32, whose body was found inside a refrigerator in San Carlos, according to montevideo.com.uy.
The Public Prosecutor's Office appealed the ruling, meaning the decision will be in the hands of an Appeals Court. The crime occurred on 15 May in a residence in the Asturias neighbourhood of San Carlos, where W.F. lived with the victim.
According to the Public Prosecutor, the day after the incident the man went to a police station to report the crime and hand over the woman's son. On 27 May, Mauricio José Pérez Alvira was charged as the alleged perpetrator of the homicide and placed in pre-trial detention.
W.F. had obtained house arrest on 17 May, but the Appeals Court revoked that measure and sent him to pre-trial detention, initially set for 180 days. In appealing the new ruling, deputy prosecutor María Elvira Olazabal argued there was a risk of flight and obstruction of the investigation.
The Public Prosecutor maintains that the defendant initially offered an implausible account of a hooded attacker in order to divert the investigation. The Public Prosecutor also asserts that there is "semi-conclusive evidence that W.F. was in his house when the homicide occurred" and that "it cannot be ruled out that the motive could have been linked to drug-related matters".
Even so, the Public Prosecutor itself acknowledged that it still lacks complete clarity about how events unfolded or about the exact degree of the defendant's involvement in the crime.
The defence, handled by lawyer Andrés Bail, contends that W.F. is innocent and that he acted under extreme duress. According to the defence counsel, his client did not report immediately because he received a warning that he "would end up the same way as his friend". "We believe that this exempts him from covering up that homicide," Bail stated.
The lawyer further argued that the defendant is "completely first-time" and that he suffers from a health problem that is not receiving adequate treatment in prison. "For six months the man has been suffering pre-trial detention," he said, and warned that this measure "in no way should be an anticipatory sentence".
In his ruling, the judge found that no concrete attempt at flight, intimidation of witnesses or obstruction of the investigation had been established. "It is not proportionate for the man to remain in pre-trial detention given the risks that, although they may exist," the magistrate stated.
Source: Google News UY — Montevideo