Formal Accusations Made In Journalist’s Murder Case

THE Prosecutor’s Office has formallyaccused nine men of charges relating tothe murder of Colombian-born CostaRican radio journalist Parmenio Medina,who was shot to death July 7, 2001.All nine were accused Tuesday of thehighest degree of murder (homicidio calificado),and Catholic priest Minor Calvoand businessman Omar Chaves, consideredthe intellectual authors of the crime,were also accused of fraud, money launderingand illicit association, according tothe Judicial Branch.Also charged were alleged triggermanLuis Alberto Aguirre, a Nicaraguanknown as “El Indio,” Juan GabrielCarvajal and Randall González. TheProsecutor’s Office also accusedColombian John Gutiérrez, Jorge Castillo,Danny Smith and Juan Hernández asbeing intermediaries in Medina’s assassination.All of them are in custody.Aguirre, “El Indio,” told The TicoTimes earlier this year he had confessedto the murder before a judge in March,and also claimed Chaves and Calvo areinnocent of the charges (TT, April 16).Just before Medina was shot pointblankthree times in the head and torsooutside his home, the journalist had produceda series of investigative reportsdenouncing financial irregularities in thethen-widely popular and now-defunctCatholic radio station Radio María. Thestation was created and run by Calvo andbankrolled by Chaves (TT, Jan. 9).In related news, a journalist for thenewspaper Diario Extra, Adrián Marrero,was formally accused of coercion for havingallegedly passed a cell phone toAguirre when he was in prison, and “ElIndio” allegedly used the cell phone tointimidate witnesses.