Alberto Rotondo, executive of Tahoe Mine, San Rafael in Guatemala, gave direct orders to assassinate members of the community San Rafael Las Flores.
The investigation of the mining conflicts in San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa, took a 180 degrees turn, after the Public Ministry submitted audio from wiretapping as evidence. In the audio it can be clearly heard how Alberto Rotondo, head of the San Rafael Mining Security outfit ordered to assassinate opponents of the mine.
The newspaper Siglo.21 published today a report titled “Rotondo ordered: Kill those sons of B..”, the report documents how the Security Chief gave direct orders to assassinate mining protesters and opponents of the mining project.
“The preliminary investigations found that Rotondo gave the order to attack the community, he also ordered the crime scene to be cleaned up and change the police report.”
The information reveals Rotondo making several statements: “God dam dogs, they do not understand that the mine generates jobs”. “We must eliminate these animals’ pieces of shit”. “We can not allow people to establish resistance, another Puya no”. “Kill house sons of Bitches”
Despite this situation, Rotondo is benefited by a benevolent surrogate measure of only house arrest by officials of the justice department of Guatemala. The prosecution has asked to revoke that proxy measure.
On the other hand, opponents of the mine are still detained without being brought before a judge, because their warranties were restricted by a state of siege.
Rortondo was apprehended at the airport La Aurora, when he trying to flee the country. Wire tapping of conversations between him and his son reveal that he planned to leave Guatemala for a while, because “I ordered to kill some of these sons of Bitches.”
Sources: La Hora Guatemala, Siglo XXI.
For more extensive information on the background of the conflict see: State of Siege: Mining Conflict Escalates in Guatemala, May 2, 2013