MARÍA DEL ROSARIO MELGAR MARTÍNEZ LINKED TO PROCEEDINGS IN TWO CASES: RIVERA AND EL INFIERNITO

Guatemala, October 31, 2012. Today, Judge Martha Sierra de Stalling, head of the Eighth Criminal Court, linked María del Rosario Melgar Martínez to proceedings on charges of criminal association and murder in relation to the investigation into the murder of the former Ministry of the Interior advisor, Víctor José Rivera Azuaje, in 2008. In addition, yesterday, Judge Carol Patricia Flores, from the Court of the First Instance for High-Risk Matters, linked Melgar Martínez to proceedings on the charge of extrajudicial killing under the El Infiernito prison case (2005 murder of Edwin Estuardo Santacruz Rodríguez [Río Hondo, Zacapa]).

At the initial appearance held today, the Public Prosecutor's Office (MP) and CICIG offered a variety of evidence justifying the accusation filed against the accused party. According to the accusation, the accused party is alleged to be an accessory to the murder of the former advisor. After considering the evidence, the judge ruled that there were sufficient grounds on which to assume that Melgar Martínez formed part of a criminal organization led by Jorge Mario Paredes Córdoba and that she was involved in the murder of her former boss.

The evidence presented included:

• Early evidence that clearly identifies how Melgar Martínez filtered information to the criminal organization regarding the movements of the former advisor.
• A financial analysis report demonstrating deposits made in a oversees bank account held by Melgar Martínez—the payment amounts were outside of the limits of her financial circumstances. These deposits were made a day prior to and day after Rivera's murder.
• Witnesses confirm the direct link between the accused party and Jorge Alberto Choto Cepeda—who is alleged to be the person responsible for planning the crime.
• Scientific proof was offered by the National Institute for Forensic Science (INACIF): crime scene analysis, ballistic analysis, video analysis, and crime organization structural analysis.

An investigation period of two months was set to offer other relevant evidence and to guarantee the right to counsel.

María del Rosario Melgar Martínez was arrested yesterday in Guatemala City airport, following her deportation from the US. Since 2011, she has been the subject of an international arrest warrant.