The Environmental Crimes Prosecutor’s Office, in coordination with the Metropolitan Regional Prosecutor’s Office, carried out investigations this Friday, October 10, at kilometer 24.5 of the highway to El Salvador, as part of an ex officio investigation to establish the causes of the landslides recorded this week in that sector.
The objective of the investigations is to determine if there were earth movements, tree felling or other actions that could have contributed to the slope slip that occurred in the area.
Representatives of the Ministry of Energy and Mines participated in the proceedings; from the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources; from the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (Conred); and the National Forest Institute (INAB), who inspected the affected area and compiled technical information for the file.
Personnel from the Crimes Against Life Unit also attended, since it is presumed that Virgilio Pérez Antón, 65 years old, originally from Huehuetenango, was buried in the sector. It is estimated that his body would be about 20 meters deep, under tons of earth that have given way again.
For its part, the Municipality of Fraijanes identified the owner of the land where the landslide occurred: César Érick Rolando Winter Chen, who appears in the cadastral registry as the owner.
The commune will file a criminal complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office against Winter Chen and will also proceed through administrative channels. According to the Municipal Code, the sanction could reach a fine of up to Q500 thousand, because it would have been built without a municipal permit or corresponding authorization.
The authorities maintain surveillance in the area, given the instability of the terrain and the risk of new landslides due to water saturation due to recent rains.
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