Friday, November 11, 2005

Only in the empty revolution is corruption so blatant Abuse of Power, Corruption, Misuse of Funds, Mismanagement, Wasting Public Funds, Misapropiation of Funds, Violation of Electoral Laws, Lack of Transparency, Absence of Ethical Values, Dishonesty...In any other country this would cause an outrage, this money could be used for better purposes, rather than this self-serving, self-promoting, misuse of public property.. Only the empty revolution can show so much in a single picture! (Thanks Tupa for the picture in ND) 7:11:32 PM    comment []

The convoluted and incoherent story of the Anderson assasination One of the advantages of having a blog reporting on Venezuelan events is that I have an archive of what has been happening in Venezuela in the last three and some years. Since I have written most of it, I tend to remember what I wrote about, even if my memory is not as good as it used to be. A simple Google search usually leads me to the right place and story to recreate links and bring back history. Thus, it is not hard for me to go back and revisit issues, reconstruct timelines and refresh events. This all comes to mind because I have been wondering during the last week, whether it was worth doing a summary of the timeline of the Danilo Anderson case, sprinkled with comments about inconsistencies and implausibilities. After all, someone who does not live here and has not followed the case closely would not have any clue about what this is all about when I post about it and whether those accused last week may or not have something to do with the murder. I sort of put this project off a few times this week as work responsibilities did not allow me to pursue the idea further earlier in the week. But then, I saw a sentence in an interview with the Prosecutor General that just ‘irked me so much, that I promised to work on this article before the week was over. Quico also has a good summary, without a detailed timeline of events, which may actually serve as a good introduction to my somewhat drier tale of the case which follows. So the Prosecutor General, in an interview this week in Tal Cual said the following: “Nobody has been as coherent as me in this case . I have handled this case with the utmost transparency” The above sentence is absolutely outrageous, as the following timeline of the Anderson case clearly indicates and shows: Nov-18-2004: Prosecutor Danilo Anderson, the man put in charge of most political cases by the Prosecutor General, is assassinated by the placement of a bomb under the armored Toyota Land Cruiser he was driving (He did not own it, he usually drove a smaller Toyota as told to Tal Cual in an interview weeks before his murder). Strange things about that night: 1) A group of intelligence police was patrolling the streets near the site where the bomb blew off and according to witnesses interviewed by the investigative police they blocked traffic right before the explosion 2) Minutes after the explosion, in what was obviously a dangerous crime site, when there could have been more bombs or explosions, high ranking officials led by the Vice-President began showing up and giving interviews on national TV in what should have been a cordoned off crime scene. 3) Danilo Anderson’s body and car were not blown into pieces, suggesting an incendiary device and not a powerful explosive device. Of course, the opposition was immediately blamed. Nov-20-2004. Danilo Anderson is buried and is honored as a hero of the country and the revolution. He is given the highest decoration of the land posthumously. The opposition continues to be blamed. The man caught on video as being one of the murderers of Mrs. Maritza Ron on August 15th. 2004, protesting the results of the referendum, shows up at Anderson’s funeral, despite the fact that he was in prison. That same day, Juan Bautista Guevara, a former intelligence police inspector is detained by the investigative police, liberated and detained again. The Prosecutor General first says Guevara has been detained, and then he claims he was wrong and he is not in detention. He also says this was a terrorist act. Nov. 23d. 2004. Lawyer Antonio Lopez Castillo is intercepted by a police car and shot dead. There is no evidence that those following him ever identified themselves as cops (They were driving an unmarked car). His parents are detained and jailed Danilo Anderson’ best friend, MVR city councilman Carlos Herrera, says that the Vice-President had called Anderson a few times to ask that some members of the financial system who Anderson was going to charge with rebellion for going to the Presidential Palace on April 11th. 2002 should not be charged. Nov. 24. 2004. The Prosecutor General’s office reports that brother Otoniel and Roland Guevara (Juan’s cousins) are missing. Witnesses say Otoniel was detained by the police as he left the Magnum shooting range in Caracas. Nov. 25 2004. Juan Carlos Sanchez is shot dead by the police in a Motel in Barquisimeto. The Guevara brothers are supposedly detained by the National Guard. Nov. 29th. 2005. The investigative police raids Club Hebraica a Jewish Country Club looking for clues about the Anderson murder. To date there has been no explanation for this raid which was done by fully armed men when the club was full of kids. Castillo’s parents are freed The Prosecutor asks that the Guevara brothers and cousin be jailed Dec. 1st. 2004 Due to the errors and excesses of the investigative police the Prosecutor’s office removes the homicide investigators from the Anderson case. Prosecutor says that the case is almost solved and soon they will announce who ordered the assassination, Dec. 8th. 2004 The investigative police says 12 people received $100,000 each to kill Anderson and it was brothers Rolando and Otoniel Guevara who planned it. Johann Pena placed the explosive Pedro Lander built it and dead lawyer Antonio Lopez Castillo supplied the explosives Pena and Lander and in the US. Dec 12th. 2004. The Guevara brothers say they have been tortured. The cousin Juan says they want him to accuse his cousins. Dec. 18th. 2004. The Prosecutor General says that the statements by Councilman Carlos Herrera have helped “orient” the investigations and they are closer to the masterminds of the assassination. A few days later he says that he does not discard the possibility that Danilo Anderson was involved in blackmail relate to the cases he was handling. Dec. 22nd. 2004 Councilman Carlos Herrera accuses Lawyer Socrates Tinaco of stealing a billion bolivars (US$ 520,000 at the time) from Andersons’ apartment. Sometime around those days, Anderson’s sister denounces that her brother’s two Jet skis, trailer and car can not be found. She also wonders whatever happened to her brother’s two apartments. No explanation is given for Anderson wealth on his meager salary. Dec. 31st.2004 Minister of Justice Chacon says the case is essentially solved and that the names will be announced in January. Jan. 5th. 2005. Minister of Justice Chacon says that it has been determined that two law firms were contacting those being charged with going to the Presidential Palace in April 11 2002, asking for money to be removed off the list by Prosecutor Anderson. He implies that Anderson knew little about it.(Curiously after this Anderson was no longer hailed as a hero, until two nights ago) Jan 10th . 2005 Reporter Patricia Poleo accuses Prosecutors Bauza and Castillo, the same ones in charge of her case today of being part of Anderson’s extortion ring. March 10th. 2005. The Prosecutor’s Office begins citing bankers who attended a wedding in Dominican Republic and they are told it is about the Anderson case July 12th. 2005. Prosecutor Rodriguez says that the murderers had planned to murder either Chavez or him, but due to difficulties with them, they decided to kill Anderson (!!). The purpose: To destabilize the country! (By killing Anderson?) Oct. 10th. 2005. The Prosecutor General announces that the CIA and the Colombian paramilitary were involved and he will charge people on Nov. 4th. Then this week, four apparently unconnected people were charged with Anderson’ murder. The evidence: --Testimony only from a Colombian who claims to have been a member of the Colombian paramilitary. He says he was at all the meetings at brought in 12 kilograms of C4 to kill Anderson. (Which would have blown up the whole neighborhood where the explosion occurred, but Anderson’ body was intact, burned as if the device was incendiary, but in one piece. In fact, here you can find an expert on explosive talking about this inconsistency) -.Telephone calls between Johan Pena and Juan Carlos Sanchez murdered in Barquisimeto That’s it! A single person tells a story and he is given all of the credibility of the world. When the press questions how a former paramilitary testimony can be given so much credibility, Prosecutor General argues that the guy is a psychiatrist (!!). But then in the last few days we have learned that: --The name of the infamous psychiatrist, the only witness, former military, does not appear in any of the identification registries of the Colombian Identification Office. --The same name fails to appear in the records of the Colombian association of Psychiatrists. --The Colombian Intelligence Police say they have a record of someone that claimed to have that name who was detained “a couple of times” for identity theft, claimed to know German (which he didn’t) and claimed to be a psychiatrist (which he wasn’t) --This guys Venezuelan ID card turns out not to exist. And the whole case that has been managed in such “coherent and transparent fashion” is based only on this single witness! And the extortion ring? And Anderson’s wealth? And the explosives? And the Intelligence police near the explosion right before it occurred? And the Altamira murderer at the burial? And the twelve people that were paid $100,000 each to blow Anderson up? And why was Anderson going around without bodyguards that night? And how did the murderers know it was his car, if it was not his? And how was he identified instantly if it was not his car? And who hired and protected the Guevara brothers to hide former Fujimori assistant Montesinos while in hiding in Venezuela. I guess I ask too much, but hey, I only want simple answers, I am not even asking for coherence! 1:23:17 AM    comment []