Ex-security boss loses 5-year jail appeal
THE FORMER Executive Secretary of Panama’s Security Council (CSN) has lost his appeal against a 5-year jail term for injuring Filemón Medina.the general secretary of the Panama Union of Journalists when he went to the Quarry Heights in Ancon to assist two TVN News reporters who had been detained by police.
The Tenth Criminal Court had convicted Garuz on January 24 of this year. The ruling was appealed by the ex-official and now in a ruling of July 26, the Second Superior Court confirmed the judgment, reports TVN.
“There is subjective responsibility, relating to the existence of willfulness or recklessness concerning conduct of this agent (Alejandro Garuz), “says the ruling of the Second Court
Carlos Carrillo, Garuz’s lawyer, has filed a cassation (last appeal). Now the Second Court must decide whether to grant the cassation and the appeal will be settled by the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court.
Background
The TVN reporters were detained on June 11, 2013 at Quarry Heights in Ancon, when they went to do news coverage at the CSN and were allegedly recording in a restricted area.
Five civilian clerks were present when Garuz, told the journalists to hand over the recording equipment before being released. At that moment, Medina began to record with his cell phone, and the civilians and Garuz went over, to attack him.
Medina indicated that Garuz took him by the lapels of his coat and flung him up to five times against the car. They removed his cell phone and erased the video he had recorded.
The Institute of Forensic Medicine and Forensic Sciences (Imelcf) gave Medina a 21-day incapacity notice and subsequently, another definitive 91-day incapacity, for injuries suffered from the attack.
In addition to this case, Garuz faces two other criminal proceedings.
He is awaiting trial next January 15, in the Sixteenth Court in the wiretapping case during the previous government.
Garuz is also accused of peculation for the purchase of 19 radars for $ 125 million, from the Italian conglomerate Finmeccanica. Currently, Garuz he is under a precautionary measure of country jail.
