Former congressman Michael Urtecho Medina and his wife Claudia Gonzales Valdivia, sentenced to 22 years and 28 years in prison, respectively, for dodging the salaries of congressional workers and appropriating donationsleft their home on November 11, 2024 to an unknown destination.
Both were prohibited from leaving Lima, changing their address and were under police surveillance, but when the guards arrived at their house on November 11, they did not find them and their relatives said they did not know their current whereabouts.
For this reason, the supreme judge of preparatory investigation Juan Carlos Checkley gave the National Police a search warrant, location and national and international capture of Michael Urtecho and Gonzales. Both must enter a penal center to serve the sentences they received for crimes of concussion, embezzlement, illicit appropriation, illicit enrichment and money laundering.
The ruling established that Michael Urtecho used his disability to manage and obtain donations that did not reach the supposed beneficiaries.
On September 5, 2023, the Special Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court sentenced Michael Urtecho to 22 years and 5 months in prison and his wife, Claudia Gonzales, to 28 years in prison, for docking the salaries of four congressional office workers, appropriating donations sent by citizens of Luxembourg for the victims of the earthquake of Pisco in 2007 and money laundering.
In addition, they were required to pay joint and several civil reparations of 3,038,656.06 soles in favor of the State. Additionally, Claudia Gonzales was ordered to pay a fine of 46,770.00 soles and civil reparation of up to 205 thousand soles in favor of the victims and the State, plus the return of money, property, illicitly appropriated effects and profits they could have generated.
A request from clandestinity
The execution of the sentence was postponed until the verdict is reviewed and confirmed by the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court. Furthermore, taking into account that Urtecho moves around in a wheelchair and requires, according to legal medicine reports, specialized medical care.
However, on the same day that the Supreme Court confirmed and published said sentence, November 8, 2024, both decided to flee.
Despite everything, from hiding, on November 18, Urtecho and Gonzales asked the judge to modify the effective prison sentence, for use of shackles, house arrest or police surveillance, citing the delicate state of health of the first of those mentioned.
José Neyra Flores, president of the Special Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court
Urtecho Medina argued that this is a person with a disability since birth declared with total disability, suffering from degenerative muscular atrophy, and that it is complicated by a series of diseases such as a large diaphragmatic hernia, he lives with a colostomy, severe scoliosis, sleep apnea, pain in the knees, continuous secretions, myasthenia gravis for which there is no cure, glaucoma, resolution required.
The magistrate denied that request because the proposed benefits are not contemplated for a sentence of the nature that they have received and given that they had violated the rules of conduct that had been imposed on them, by leaving their house with no known destination.
Now, the police must look for them, arrest them where they are to be placed at the disposal of the INPE, which will decide in which prison they serve their sentence.
Police Report
By Official Letter dated 11/09/2024, PNP Commander Rojas Alania, Head of the Comprehensive Security Division of the PNP, informed the Preparatory Investigation Court of the Supreme Court of the lifting of the continuous police custody service for the sentenced Urtecho Medina and Gonzales. Valdivia at the address located in the La Rivera de Monterrico urbanization, La Molina district, Lima.
Furthermore, it is made known that said defendants, on 11/08/2024, have violated the judicial measure imposed, abandoning the home, not knowing their whereabouts. PNP non-commissioned officer Alata Montañez reported that at 09:20 on 11/08/2024 they were not found on the property. The police knocked on the door, being attended to by Urtecho Medina’s sister who told them that they were not there.
