Attorney Luis Almada, representing former senator Erico Galeano, said Wednesday that the most suitable place for his client's pretrial detention is the Viñas Cué military prison or the National Police Specialized Group. The statement came after Galeano was transferred from the Judicial Department to the National Pretrial Detention Center, the former Tacumbú National Penitentiary.
Almada argued that Galeano, having been a prominent political figure for several years, has both supporters and detractors, which would justify the need for a location that guarantees his safety. In addition, the attorney noted that the former senator is a colon cancer survivor and that his health condition must be taken into account. "We have many examples of people who, regardless of the crime committed, were given the possibility of serving confinement in a place that ensures their well-being," he said.
The defense attorney also criticized the decision by the Specialized Organized Crime Sentencing Court, which ordered pretrial detention in Tacumbú. "The court made a mistake by ruling ambiguously," he stated, adding that the precautionary measure is only meant to secure the proceedings, to which Galeano "was never recalcitrant."
The director general of Penitentiary Establishments at the Ministry of Justice, Rubén Peña, confirmed that Galeano will serve his pretrial detention at the National Pretrial Detention Center. The former Colorado Party senator was sentenced to 13 years in prison for drug trafficking money laundering and criminal association, after his ties to Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset and to Miguel Ángel Insfrán, known as "Tío Rico," were proven.
Almada said that if he does not secure the transfer through a request to the court, he intends to file a special precautionary measure with the Criminal Enforcement Court in the coming days.