Bogota’s Superior Tribunal denies defense attorney’s nullification request

José Joaquín Urbano magistrate of the Superior Tribunal of Bogota denied Wednesday defense attorney Sergio Rodriguez’s petition to exclude material evidence in the case against his client Army Second Lieutenant Raúl Muñoz for rape and murder.

Raul Muñoz an active army officer is accused of raping two young girls and then torturing and killing one of them, Jenny Torres, along with her two siblings Jimmy and Jefferson in October 2010.

The magistrate’s decision handed down this week will allow the material evidence collected during the exhumation of the bodies of the Torres siblings along with their clothes to be considered in this case. Muñoz’s DNA was found on the clothes of the deceased children.

With this decision Urbano confirms Judge Martha Artunduaga’s initial decision to deny Rodriguez’s petition.

The decision was announced this Wednesday at the headquarters of the Superior Tribunal of Bogota with the notable absence of defense attorney Rodriguez.

«As usual the defense attorney did not show up,» Urbano said, «we will take a one hour recess to try and find him and give him time to arrive.»

With Rodriguez still absent the hearing moved forward after 4:00p.m. The magistrate reiterated judge Artunduaga’s arguments about the tardiness of the petition to exclude, and ratified the judge’s order to include the material evidence.

In that fashion the Tribunal firmly supported the judge’s decision and restated that, «it makes no sense to argue the evidence five months after it has been approved.»