September 17, 2024, 3:56 PM
September 17, 2024, 3:56 PM
Anti-corruption and violence judge Vivian Balcázar ordered the preventive detention in Palmasola prison of Rita Cuéllar Miranda and Leidy Guzmán Soliz, cleaning workers, accused of carrying 12 packages of cocaine in the cabin from a Bolivian Aviation (BoA) plane, whose final destination was Madrid, Spain.
The women were charged with the crimes of trafficking in controlled substances, conspiracy and criminal association by a commission of anti-narcotics prosecutors, after 13 kilos of high-purity cocaine were discovered in a garbage bin on the BoA plane, on September 12, at 7:30 p.m., when had just arrived at Viru Viru airport, from Santa Cuz, coming from the Jorge Wilstermann airport in Cochabamba.
The controlled substances prosecutors: Julio Cesar Porras, Juan Pablo Sanchez, Freddy Duran Carmen Guzman and Rosa Maria Flores, based their accusation on the existence of evidence of a criminal organization that delivered the packages of drugs into the cabin of the ship, and that the two women supposedly helped in this work.
Before issuing the ruling, Judge Vivian Balcázar, He gave the floor to the accused to make use of their defense material. Before the judge, the accused Rita Cuéllar Miranda said that that day she went up to the cabin of the plane and since she knew it was coming from Cochabamba with passengers, she knocked on the door.
“I went to the trash can at the door, but I didn’t give it any importance.I took out the bags to leave quickly, because we have to do this cleaning job in less than 30 minutes,” he said. Meanwhile, Leidy Guzmán Soliz, in front of the judge, said: “I want to say that I am innocent; that is all.”
The police reports presented by the Prosecutor’s Office at the hearing state that the two women in charge of cleaning are responsible for the crimes charged, since They appear in the security camera images having manipulated the packages with cocaine from the garbage dumpster, which was inside the plane.
Likewise, investigations by the Special Force to Fight Drug Trafficking and the Prosecutor’s Office indicate that on September 12, The BoA supervisor was the one who alerted about the packages to the chief of the crew cabin of the aircraft registered CP-3214 of BoA, on flight 776.
The 12 packages, which They contained 13 kilos of high purity cocaine, they were found in the central part of the ship, at the passenger entrance, in a garbage container. For this reason, police from the Felcn were immediately called, who came with trained dogs and detected the drugs.
Investigations into the case are continuing, as it is believed that there are more people involved in the incident. The BoA CP-3214 aircraft remains detained on the platform of Viru Viru airport by order of the Controlled Substances Prosecutor’s Office.
At the end of the hearing, Judge Vivian Balcázar said she was surprised by the fact that drugs arrive so easily. to the airplane cabin trash can, There are strict controls with security cameras, baggage scanners, body scanners of passengers and airport workers, as well as permanent surveillance by Felcn agents with trained dogs.
The judge urged the Prosecutor’s Office and the Felcn to carry out a more in-depth investigation and detect how that cocaine could have been brought into the ship, when “Not even a packet of coffee is delivered to the restaurants” from the airport, without being subject to controls. He said the investigation should be broader and more complete.
