Trial for massacre of 7 kids out for a walk

The trial of two men accused of the massacre of the seven young people in a bunker in Espinar Colón began on Thursday under heavy security.

The two defendants charged with the crimes of homicide and aggravated femicide, aggravated robbery, and deprivation of liberty are Jean Carlos Hernández, alias Niñito, 23 years old, and Reynaldo Cuadra McBean, alias Reycito or Monstruo, 26 years old, who arrived heavily guarded by the National Police.

The massacre took place on July 17, 2020 when the sisters Azucena and Yulissa Martínez Daley,15, the sisters Leydis Mabel and Yeleny 15, Yesibel Marriota Villarreta, 16, accompanied by Vladimir Garay, 18; Edgar Jiménez, 22, and Santiago Carvajal, 17, went to enjoy a walk near the Espinar lake, which borders Puerto Escondido, where the victims lived.

Relatives of the victims cry out for justice and maximum punishment for those involved and reject any sentencing agreement.

“Our children were murdered and they deserve justice, they had a future ahead of them, their dreams were cut short and they did not mind taking their lives,” they said.

The Colón Homicide and Femicide Prosecutor’s Office requests a sentence of 72 years for the crimes committed against the seven young people from the Valle Verde community, in Puerto Escondido, in the Cristóbal district of Colón.