EX PNC INSPECTOR SENT TO PRISON FOR DRUG THEFT

Guatemala, September 19, 2013. Today, Court A of the First Instance for High-Risk Matters ordered that Melvin Antonio Castillo Pineda (a former National Civil Police [PNC] inspector) be prosecuted and remanded in custody for his alleged involvement in the theft of drugs from a drug trafficking organization (Amatitlán Case).

At the initial appearance, the Court ordered that Castillo Pineda be charged with the following: criminal association; illegal trade, trafficking and storage; illegal possession and storage of offensive firearms, explosives, chemical weapons, biological weapons, traps, and experimental weapons; illegal possession of firearm ammunition; and obstruction of justice.

The investigations undertaken by the Public Prosecutor's Office (MP) and CICIG established that Castillo Pineda formed part of a criminal organization within the PNC and that he allegedly stole an unconfirmed amount of drugs from traffickers. This group of police officials used State power and State machinery to conduct its criminal activity and create impunity for actions which it knew were illegal.

CICIG acts as a complementary prosecutor in these criminal proceedings.

Final conclusions
Today, in this same case, Trial Court B for High-Risk Matters finished the conclusions of the trial of the 19 accused on charges of alleged involvement in drug theft, including former PNC Director, Baltazar Gómez Barrios.

The MP and CICIG requested sentences of between 8 and 100 years in prison for the 19 accused individuals on a number of different charges.

The continuation of the trial was scheduled by the Court for September 23, when the MP will counter the final arguments of the defense counsel, which requested the acquittal of the accused.

Background
The case concerns a criminal structure involved in the murder of five police officers and the involvement of PNC officers in the theft of drugs. At a warehouse complex in the municipality of Amatitlán, the scene of the confrontation between police officers and alleged drug traffickers, 370 kilos of drugs and an arsenal of weapons were seized on April 24, 2009.

Former inspector Melvin Antonio Castillo Pineda was arrested by the authorities on September 6, 2013 in San José Acatempa, Department of Jutiapa.

The accused is the seventh police officer to be arrested in the case; three additional officers continue to abscond from justice authorities.