Ecuador judge orders preventative detention and other measures for 17 defendants in organized crime and bribery case News
DEZALB / Pixabay
Ecuador judge orders preventative detention and other measures for 17 defendants in organized crime and bribery case

The Ecuadorian State Attorney’s General Office announced Sunday that a national judge granted prosecutor Diana Salazar’s request and ordered the preventative detention of 14 defendants in a case related to alleged bribery and organized crime. The judge also ordered house arrest and the use of electronic devices for two elderly individuals, as well as preventative measures for.a pregnant defendant. Moreover, the bank accounts of all those linked are to be retained for a total of one million dollars, divided proportionally among each of them.

According to the daily Ecuadorian newspaper El Comercio, the defendants were arrested in last Saturday in a joint operation in eight provinces of the country. This raid was part of a much larger investigation known as the “Plaga Case” (translated: plague case), which seeks to break down an alleged organized crime network accused of manipulating the Ecuadorian judicial system to free prisoners through bribes.

Among the accused are judges, secretaries, prison officials, lawyers and other public officials. Cristian Giovanny R. M. was named as the leader of the organization who allegedly directed, planned and coordinated the freeing of prisoners. This included managing transfers from one social rehabilitation center to another, interventions in pre-arranged hearings, and the facilitated issuance of medical certificates. This primarily involved carrying out bribes of numerous administrative and judicial personnel including high-ranking officials.

In early April of this year, a similar operation was carried out in eight provinces, in which important evidence was obtained and 14 people were arrested. Here too, preventative detention was ordered for 13 out of the 14 defendants.

According to El Comercio, 241 prisoners were released between January 2022 and March 2023, by claiming to have risk conditions or illness. These assertions were often not proven in court but convinced judges through “habeas corpus,” a legal procedure meant to safeguard personal freedom.

THIS DAY @ LAW

American Bar Assocation founded

The American Bar Association (ABA) was founded on August 21, 1878, by a group of 75 lawyers. The organization would become the US's foremost association of attorneys, although its membership declined substantially from 2009 to 2019. Learn more about the history of the ABA.

American Bar Association organized

On August 21, 1878, the American Bar Association was organized at a meeting in Saratoga Springs, New York.

The original ABA constitution, which is still substantially the charter of the association, defined its mission as "the advancement of the science of jurisprudence, the promotion of the administration of justice and a uniformity of legislation throughout the country....".

Dumbarton Oaks Conference opens

On August 21, 1944, the Washington Conversations on International Peace and Security opened in the Dumbarton Oaks mansion in Washington, DC, US. From the opening of the conference until its close on October 7, representatives of the US, USSR, the UK, and the Republic of China laid the groundwork for the United Nations and the post-WWII world. Learn more about the Dumbarton Oaks Conference from the United Nations.