He will spend his next 15 years in a prison. Guillermo Bermejo Rojas, the congressman from Together for Peru-Voces del Pueblo-Bloque Magisterial, who intended to be the candidate for the presidency of the country of the radical left, has been sentenced by the Third National Superior Criminal Court for the crime of affiliation to a terrorist organization.
The court concluded that the legislator, who acceded to a seat through the votes of Peru Libre, maintained links with factions of the Shining Path that operated in the Vraem between 2008 and 2009, where he would have attended illegal camps of the terrorist group to receive and disseminate subversive ideological material.
The court points out that it was proven that the man known as ‘Che’ carried out activities related to the purposes of the criminal terrorist organization founded by Abimael Guzmán and that his participation in those meetings is fully proven and corroborated with photos, videos and witness statements.
The conviction comes after a long ten-year judicial process preceded by two acquittal sentences handed down in his favor and annulled by the Supreme Court, which noted an improper assessment of the evidence offered by both the prosecutor’s office and the anti-terrorism attorney’s office.
The court also ordered the disqualification of Bermejo from holding public office for two years after completing his sentence and the payment of 100 thousand soles in civil reparation. The ruling excludes him from participating in the next general elections.
After the ruling against him, the congressman’s defense requested the annulment of the sentence, so it will be the Supreme Court that will impose the final decision. Bermejo’s congressional accessory is Zaira Arias, although her incorporation into the legislature would not be carried out.
And according to article 15-A of the Congressional Regulations, when there is a final sentence for terrorism, the accessory does not assume and the seat remains empty. In this case, the last instance must be confirmed and the annulment request could take at least a year, once the country has elected other representatives in Congress.
The Board of Directors should make a statement after receiving official notification of the sentence to one of its members.
Bermejo was already presenting himself as a pre-candidate for the presidency of the Republic for the Venceremos electoral alliance that merged the Nuevo Perú and Voces del Pueblo parties for the electoral contest.
TAX IMUTATION
The accusations presented by the Prosecutor’s Office against Guillermo Bermejo Rojas detail his alleged connection with members of the terrorist organization Sendero Luminoso in the Valley of the Apurímac, Ene and Mantaro Rivers (VRAEM), between 2008 and 2009. The accusation is supported by multiple testimonies that identify Bermejo, allegedly known with the alias “Comrade Che”, attending camps for indoctrination.
The Public Ministry has incorporated the statements of at least six witnesses, including collaborators and one convicted of terrorism, who place Bermejo in the zone of influence of the Shining Path leaders Víctor and Jorge Quispe Palomino (alias ‘José’ and ‘Raúl’).
Reports from the PNP Counter-Terrorism Directorate (Dircote) detail that Bermejo traveled from Lima to the city of Huanta, Ayacucho, between July 30 and August 4, 2008, with the objective of meeting with members of the Huanta Support Committee, a faction linked to the terrorist group.
THE EXPERTS SPEAK
Former anti-terrorism attorney Julio Galindo spoke about the process faced by the legislator from the Together for Peru-Voices of the People-Bloque Magisterial bench for alleged terrorist affiliation, categorically stating that the congressman “is a member of Sendero (Luminoso), he is a terrorist and consequently must be convicted.”
He added that the parliamentarian “has traveled nationally, constantly going to the VRAEM, detecting coordination with Sendero leaders,” in addition to having made international trips for the same purpose.
“With all that history that he has, it is definitely indisputable to me that he is going to be convicted,” said the former attorney, urging that the judge in charge of the case act legally.
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
