FORMER DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF PRISON SYSTEM CONVICTED

Guatemala, July 11, 2012. Today, the Court B for High-Risk Matters of Guatemala delivered a judgment against Vidal Efraín Requena Mazariegos (former Deputy Director of the Prison System)—in the Amatitlán case—on charges of money laundering for his ties to an organization involved in drug trafficking and murder.

According to the Court's ruling, Requena Mazariegos must serve a six-year prison sentence and pay a fine of GTQ68 700, which will be allocated to the Judiciary's (OJ) exclusive funds. Furthermore, the judgment must be published in two print media outlets.

BACKGROUND FACTS
The Amatitlán case concerns an armed confrontation that took place on April 24, 2009 between Police officers and alleged drug traffickers. Five National Civil Police (PNC) officers died as a result of the confrontation. At a later stage, authorities seized 370 kg of cocaine and a large arsenal of weapons from the site.