02/22/2020 - 4:24 PM
- Clarín.com
- Society
Four years after Montañita's double crime , Marina Menegazzo's mother (21) published a moving letter to remember her daughter, who was murdered along with her friend María José Coni (21) while the young Mendoza shared a vacation in Ecuador.
"Four years in which we went through wounds without closing, struggles, claims for justice, trials, and now ... a time of healing," said the mother, in the post she shared on Facebook.
In the letter, the mother said: "We feel it alive in small or large events of our daily lives, in the lights that mark our path, and also, it is true, in the shadows of impossible days."
Meanwhile, the brother of one of the victims expressed his rejection of the investigation of the Justice of that country since he considers that, in addition to the three men who were convicted, there were other people who participated in the double murder and were never identified.
Marcos Menegazzo is the brother of Marina who - along with other relatives - is the one who still keeps the claim of Justice alive from a distance since the discovery of the bodies, on February 22, 2016, in an open field just meters from the paradisiacal beaches that commune of 5000 inhabitants, in the peninsula of Santa Elena, in Ecuador.
Gladys Steffani, Coni's mother, also actively participated in these years of claims to clarify the case, but died on May 12, 2018, two years after her daughter's crime.
"There will always be doubt about the number of authors who had the event, since there have been more who were inside (of the crime scene)," he told Télam Marcos, who added: "Hopefully someone else appears and they can put prey too. "
Marina's brother said it was "an important wear and tear to continue with the cause, especially because of the distance" and said that "you can never be satisfied with anything that is resolved after such a fact."
Mendoza, arrival of the bodies of the two backpackers killed in Ecuador. Photo: Delfo Rodríguez.
For the crimes, two trials were carried out: the first was in August 2016, when the Criminal Court of the Provincial Court of Santa Elena condemned Alberto Segundo Mina Ponce (36) and Aurelio Eduardo "El Rojo" Rodríguez (42) to the penalty of 40 years in prison; and the second was in September 2017, when José Luis Pérez Castro (34) was sentenced to the same penalty.
The case
The bodies of Marina and María José were found wrapped in plastic and with packing tape in an area of vegetation near the beaches of Montañita, about 200 kilometers from Guayaquil, in Ecuador, on Thursday 25 and Saturday 27 February 2016, respectively.
The girls had had telephone contact with their relatives on Monday 22, the day they were last seen, and planned to return to Argentina four days later.
Argentine tourists who appeared dead in Ecuador.
After different scientific reports with DNA samples and the comparison of fingerprints, the Prosecutor's Office confirmed that the bodies belonged to the two Mendoza tourists.
In August 2016, Mina Ponce and Rodríguez were convicted after taking it for granted that the defendants first drugged both girls to make them lose their will and then "El Rojo" kept them kidnapped.
And Pérez Castro received the same penalty since his genetic profile was in the house where the girls were killed along with that of other people who were not yet identified.
Forensic studies established that "Majo" resisted, was killed in a blow to the skull and had attempted sexual abuse injuries; while Marina received six stabs in the neck , one of which broke her spinal cord, and had signs of having been handcuffed.
For their part, Colombian experts provided details of the 3D reconstruction and topographic reports made through the testimonies given by the accused and the witnesses, while the Argentine Federal Police (PFA) provided assistance in the comparison of fingerprints and the different scientific expertise with DNA samples.
Meanwhile, Ecuadorian lawyer Osiris Sánchez, who represented both Argentine families in the criminal case that took place in that country, said that "there are other genetic profiles within the crime scene but unfortunately there is no one to check them with and who already did gave us the result of Pérez Castro, "Sanchez recalled, adding:" The suspicious people were foreign tourists, by the way, we should see if we can find them since they did not live in Montañita. "
With information from Télam.