Veronica Zapana S. / La Paz
From the First Criminal Investigation Court, presided over by the now ex-judge Rafael Alcón, is where femicides and sentenced murderers were operated and captured to “sell” freedom. Yesterday, the Public Ministry ordered the arrest of the second social worker involved in the “consortium” case. After these reports, the Judicial Council began today inspections of 18 courts throughout the country to identify irregularities.
Prosecutor Junior Flores explained yesterday that the commission of prosecutors handling the case of former judge Alcón issued the arrest warrant resolution “duly substantiated against one of the social workers of the First Sentencing Court, Mary CC, who after her informative statement was sent to police cells.”
This is the second social worker who worked in that court. The prosecutor reported that this person – not only in the case of Richard Choque, but in those of other prisoners – was the one who “was in charge of making different reports” in favor of the prisoners.
Flores reported that the social worker “followed up different prisoners”, then identified them, captured them and asked them for money to help them get out of jail.
The prosecutor reported that the Public Ministry took the statements of a witness and it was shown that the social worker “would have demanded between 1,000 and 2,000 bolivianos to make reports in favor of those deprived of liberty.”
Two weeks ago a series of irregularities and serious offenses came to light after the arrest of Choque, the serial femicide who in 2019 was benefited from house arrest by the now former judge Alcón. The offender received this benefit despite having a sentence of 30 years in prison without the right to pardon.
Photo: APG
After learning of these facts, not only Alcon, but also his assistant, a social worker, a forensic doctor and two lawyers were also preventively detained for releasing the serial femicide.
After being released, this criminal murdered two teenagers and is being investigated for raping dozens of women.
Flores said that this second detained official was also not fulfilling her duties as established by Law 025 of the Supreme Court of Justice. One of her obligations was to follow up on the inmates she released, but she did not perform that task.
The representative of the Public Ministry indicated that -for example- in the case of Richard Choque “according to the data of the investigation, on December 11, 2019 his lawyers presented an incident of house arrest and from there with the decree of the former judge Alcón has arranged for the social worker to verify the address of the beneficiary and the guarantors. These aspects have not been duly fulfilled because they do not have the photographic plates of the domicile of the guarantors, nor of the beneficiary”.
Given these elements, the prosecutors commission issued the arrest warrant. Yesterday morning that provision was fulfilled after his informative statement. Now, the Public Ministry has 24 hours to refer it to a jurisdictional authority so that its legal situation can be defined.
The official is accused of the crimes of improper use of influence, breach of duties and consortium of judges, prosecutors, lawyers and police officers in a degree of complicity.
Flores revealed that since last week the Public Ministry has carried out inspections of two Criminal Investigation Courts, “of which four legal processes could be collected that have the same modus operandi, as in the case of Richard Choque.”
According to the authority, for these four processes the Prosecutor’s Office is conducting an investigation to find out “if the deadlines were met and if the judicial authority was able to justify the decision to release these people who were keeping their deprivation of liberty based on a conviction ”.
