Featured image: The Mayor of Zamora municipality in Guatire, Miranda state, Raziel Rodríguez. Photo: RedRadioVE.
The Attorney General’s Office of Venezuela has indicted Raziel Rodríguez, mayor of Zamora municipality in Guatire, Miranda state, for the arbitrary eviction of several families from the Villa Zamora 2021 locality.
Last week, on April 21, the 25th Attorney’s Office of the Public Ministry, which has a special jurisdiction over corruption cases, charged the mayor of Zamora during the summons he attended that day along with his lawyers.
Rodríguez left after his indictment session and gave no comments.
Mayor Rodríguez was prosecuted for giving a direct order to demolish the homes of a group of families and destroy their plot of land in Villa Zamora 2021 locality of Zamora municipality.
The Attorney’s Office will continue the investigation while the mayor’s lawyers prepare his defense.
Moreover, a Court of Control of the Criminal Judicial Circuit of Miranda state, in the Guarenas-Guatire-Barlovento subregion, sentenced four officials of the Guatire Municipal Police (Polizamora) to prison for having been involved in the eviction.
During the hearing for the police officers, two prosecutors on environmental matters and a representative of the Public Ministry were in charge of presenting the accusation.
The detained police officials are the director of Polizamora, Naileth Pérez; chief of operations, José Párica, Belkis Yadira Ramírez, and Neile Martínez Marín. All of them have been detained at the Miranda State Police headquarters in Guarenas.
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According to the news outlet El Pitazo, the officials have been accused of at least 10 crimes, including complicity in corruption, abuse of power, and complicity in the crime of illegitimate deprivation of liberty.
In addition to these, they have been charged with other felonies such as simulation of a punishable act, contravention of territorial planning, degradation of soils suitable for food production, and affecting forest heritage species.
Last week the National Assembly of Venezuela appointed a special commission to investigate the events that took place in the Villa Zamora 2021 locality. The commission interviewed the affected families about the incidents surrounding the eviction and the destruction of their farmland.
Featured image: The Mayor of Zamora municipality in Guatire, Miranda state, Raziel Rodríguez. Photo: RedRadioVE.
(RedRadioVE) by Ana Perdigón
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
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