Alexis Mera entered prison and Viviana Bonilla was dismissed

“I am a politically persecuted person, I am going to prison for my ideas, I am a prisoner of conscience,” were the words Alexis Mera, former Legal Secretary of the Presidency in the Rafael Correa regime, when he arrived at the Judicial Police in Guayaquil.

Alexis Mera entered prison and Viviana Bonilla was dismissed

On the morning of this Thursday, September 24, the former official was transferred from his home where he was under house arrest to the Judicial headquarters, to then be transferred to the Latacunga Prison, where he will serve his sentence of 8 years in prison for aggravated bribery in the Bribes case 2012-2016.

The National Police complied with the order of the Court of origin of the National Court of Justice (CNJ) that ordered the arrest of Mera, as well as 19 other people who were sentenced in this case.

Among those sentenced, for the same prison time, are former President Rafael Correa and former Vice President Jorge Glas , who is already in Latacunga jail, but serving a sentence for the Odebrecht case.

Víctor Aráus, Zonal Police Commander , reported that the court order is being carried out. He explained that before the transfer, Mera underwent a medical check-up to guarantee the integrity of the sentenced person.

Around 1:00 p.m., the former legal secretary left for Latacunga and, after 7:00 p.m., he arrived at the Penitentiary Center, under a strong police guard.

Viviana Bonilla was dismissed from office

Another of the provisions that are executed by the judgment in the Bribery case is the dismissal of Viviana Bonilla as a legislator in the National Assembly.

Article 115 of the Organic Law of the Legislative Branch establishes that the enforceable criminal conviction is one of the six grounds for losing office.

The National Assembly received the notification of the sentence of eight years in prison for the crime of embezzlement. The dismissal process will be immediate, since it does not require analysis by the Plenary.

Now it is expected that Rodrigo Collaguazo, alternate assembly member, will occupy the seat of Bonilla, who is as a fugitive from justice.

The parliamentary procedure establishes that the Council of Administration of the Legislature (CAL) must meet to principalize Collaguazo. (I)