Peruvian paramilitary chiefs convicted of a murder in the 1990s

Saturday, June 17th 2023 - 09:44 UTC



Montesinos was then-President Fujimori's Chief Intelligence Officer

Former Peruvian National Intelligence Service (SIE) Chief Vladimiro Montesinos and Santiago Martin Rivas, leader of the paramilitary Colina Group created under then-President Alberto Fujimori, were sentenced Friday to 23 years in prison for the premeditated murder of Mariella Barreto, it was reported in Lima.

Warrant Officer Mariela Barreto Riofano was an Army Intelligence operative who revealed the crimes of the Colina Group, as well as Montesinos' plans to kill journalists who opposed Fujimori's government (1990-2000). When her torso was found in a bag in northeastern Lima on March 23, 1997, she was 28 years old and the mother of two girls.

It was during Fujimori's second five-year term. Terrorists of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) had taken diplomats, high authorities, and even some of Fujimori's relatives hostage at the residence of the Japanese ambassador in Lima. They had promised to release them only in exchange for the release of more than 400 of their comrades in prison.

While keeping the appearance that he was willing to negotiate, Fujimori ordered the construction of a tunnel under the residence to eventually send in troops in what was known as the Chavín de Huántar operation.

More:
https://en.mercopress.com/2023/06/17/peruvian-paramilitary-chiefs-convicted-of-a-murder-in-the-1990s