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Prosecutor Paúl Pérez requests Rafael Correa’s connection in case Balda
Posted On 12 Jun 2018
Ecuadornews:
The Attorney General of the State in charge Paúl Pérez requested last Friday that he be linked to former President of the Republic Rafael Correa in the process that investigates the alleged kidnapping of ex-ambassador Fernando Balda, in August 2012, in Bogotá.
“I request that you indicate the date and time of the hearing of the connection with the fiscal instruction to citizen Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado,” indicates the request of the prosecutor in charge of Judge Daniela Camacho.
Correa was president between 2007 and 2017. He currently resides in Brussels.
The defense lawyer is his former legal secretary, Alexis Mera.
Currently, intelligence agents Raúl Ch., Jessica F. and Jorge E. are indicted in this case, as well as the ex-director of intelligence of the Police, General Fausto Tamayo; and the former National Secretary of Intelligence (Senain), Pablo Romero.
According to the private accusation of this case, that is to say, Fernando Balda, all those who until now have been linked to the case are part of the lower and middle management responsible for his kidnapping, but he believes that the order was issued by Correa, whom he accuses of “intellectual authorship”.
From Belgium, Correa denied on the previous Saturday that he sent Colombia’s former national intelligence secretary Rommy Vallejo to pursue and kidnap Balda.
After knowing the prosecutor’s request, the ex-president reacted on his Twitter account: “The ‘lawfare’ in its entirety: They can never prove corruption, so now they try to link me, without any evidence, in an alleged attempt to kidnap in Colombia, occurred in 2012, against an offender fugitive from justice, can you imagine the background they are creating? ”
Request to Assembly to authorize trial
The National Assembly will be the body that must authorize the “criminal prosecution” of Correa, based on articles 593 and 594 of the Organic Comprehensive Criminal Code, in order to guarantee due process, the right to defense and guarantee of rights of the defendants, so that subsequently the lack of any procedural requirement is not alleged, pursuant to Article 120 numeral 10 of the Constitution.
“In application of the principle of speed and guarantees of due process, enshrined in Articles 75 and 76 numeral 7 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador, since the term of the instruction is running and it ends on 18 July 2018, send an attentive letter to the economist Elizabeth Cabezas Guerrero, president of the National Assembly, so that in a term not exceeding 72 hours, the legislative body will issue the corresponding pronouncement, “the ruling issued by the Judge Camacho.
The Parliament issued a statement in which it was assured that it was waiting for the “entry of the request of the National Court of Justice related to the application for linking fiscal instruction of the economist Rafael Correa Delgado, to pronounce us”.
The judicial authorities must proceed within the framework of their powers, expressed in the communiqué.
“As is public knowledge, as of May 2017, economist Rafael Correa Delgado no longer exercises the functions of President of the Republic, therefore, Article 120 of the Constitution, numeral 10, does not apply,” the statement added. (I)
