Firefighters work to extinguish the fire at the IVSS warehouse where dialysis machines and medical supplies had been stored. Photo: Rayner Peña R.
The Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office has issued an arrest warrant for two guards of the west Caracas warehouse belonging to the Venezuelan Social Security Institute (IVSS) for their role in the fire that occurred at the facility last Monday, August 15. The fire at the Antímano warehouse destroyed dialysis machines and important medical supplies for kidney patients.
Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab reported in a Twitter post that the arrest warrant has been issued for Layla Janeth Miranda Vásquez and Jorge Ernesto Cambero Rangel, “who were in charge of safeguarding the medical supplies that were destroyed by their actions.”
2) Luego que el Ministerio Público realizara las #diligencias de rigor, se determinó que el incendio fue #provocado con la participación activa de los sujetos antes mencionados quienes realizaban la custodia de los insumos médicos destruidos por su acción.
— Tarek William Saab (@TarekWiliamSaab) August 20, 2022
RELATED CONTENT: Arson Suspected in Caracas Warehouse Fire that Destroyed Dialysis Machines
The Attorney General’s Office carried out the necessary investigative procedures and concluded that the fire was caused by arson, enabled by the active participation of Vásquez and Rangel.
The designated prosecutors of the 54th National Circuit and the 163th Circuit of the Metropolitan Area of Caracas will present the accused before the Second Court on Terrorism.
3) Dichos delincuentes serán #presentados ante el Tribunal 2 Contra el Terrorismo por los Fiscales Designados 54 Nac y 163 de AMC por los delitos de Terrorismo y Asociación para delinquir previsto en la Ley contra delincuencia organizada
— Tarek William Saab (@TarekWiliamSaab) August 20, 2022
Vásquez and Rangel will be charged with the crimes of terrorism and association with criminal intent, according to the Law Against Organized Crime.
Arson
On Thursday, August 18, the executive vice-president of Venezuela Delcy Rodríguez announced in a press conference held in Miraflores Palace that the fire at the medical warehouse was indeed arson.
“It was not an accident,” Rodríguez emphasized, and revealed that investigations determined that the fire originated at five separate points in different parts of the building. She also presented images recorded at the scene of the incident as well as other evidence.
“Today, Thursday, with evidence in hand, we can say that this fire was arson, and that it was not an accident. Investigations will continue until we find the criminals, at which point we will capture them and bring them to justice,” said the vice president during the press conference.
Additional reserves of medical supplies
The IVSS warehouse that was set on fire contained medical supplies for more than 7,000 renal patients throughout the country, as well as 134 new dialysis machines.
After the fire, President Nicolás Maduro requested that the equipment and supplies be replaced as quickly as possible. Since then, new scheduled shipments of medications and dialysis supplies have arrived in Venezuela and have been dispatched throughout the country, reported Health Minister Magalys Gutiérrez.
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
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