The Third Supraprovincial Prosecutor’s Office of Lima opened a preliminary investigation for a period of 8 months against the former dictator Alberto Fujimori for the alleged crime of qualified homicide in tort of Melissa Alfaro and Víctor Ruiz León. The former president will also be investigated for the alleged crime of attempted homicide against Alejandro Augusto Zúñiga Paz and Ricardo Letts Colmenares.
Alberto Fujimori will have to attend as an investigator to testify before the Prosecutor’s Office the next June 23 at 10.00 am through the virtual platform.
The Prosecutor’s Office also intends to interrogate the former presidential adviser Vladimir Montesinos, after INPE indicates the prison and the area in which he is serving his sentence. For the same date, the CFourth Superior Criminal Chamber decided to start with the oran trial against Víctor Penas Sandoval, Vladimiro Montesinos, Julio Salazar Monroe (former head of the National Intelligence Service SIN, and Pedro Villanueva (former commanding general of the Armed Forces).
In addition, to date, information has been requested from the Masks magazinethe Ombudsmanthe National Police of Peru (PNP)among other entities, for the case filed against the former dictator.
At the disposition of the Prosecutor’s Office, Elio Riera, Alberto Fujimori’s lawyer, played down the importance of the case and pointed out that the case would be filed in a short time. “There is no initial suspicion to carry out an investigation of this type. Without a doubt, we will file it in the shortest possible time”, he said in conversation with The Republic.
Murder of Melissa Alfaro
On October 10, 1991, the journalist and former head of information for the weekly ´Cambio´ Melissa Alfaro received at his work center an envelope containing an explosive, which detonated when opened, ending his life instantly. Alfaro was 23 years old at the time and the media outlet in which he worked was syndicated as “unofficial spokesperson for the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA).
At the time the events took place, a series of attacks and attempted attacks against human rights defenders and left-wing activists had been perpetrated.