Former Paraguayan senator Erico Galeano, sentenced on March 4 to 13 years in prison for money laundering and criminal association in the A Ultranza Py operation, which investigates the ties of alleged drug trafficker Sebastián Marset with Paraguay, awaits a decision on his place of detention. The Specialized Organized Crime Trial Court, presided over by Pablino Barreto and composed of Inés Galarza and Juan Dávalos, revoked alternative measures and ordered the pretrial detention of the former lawmaker, who is currently at the Judicial Department of the National Police.
The director of Prison Establishments of the Ministry of Justice, Colonel Rubén Peña, stated that the National Center for Pretrial Detainees, the former Tacumbú National Penitentiary, has the capacity and conditions to receive Galeano. Peña highlighted that the unit, with capacity for 1,600 inmates, currently houses 1,556 people and is undergoing renovations to hold only pretrial detainees. He also said there is no organized presence of the First Capital Command (PCC) or the Rotela Clan at the facility, only sympathizers of the latter.
The Minister of Justice, Rodrigo Nicora, explained that Galeano, due to his political profile, will receive treatment of strict equality, but with security measures to preserve his integrity. Nicora detailed that the former VIP cells have been eliminated and that the former senator may share a cell with two or three inmates, unless intelligence analyses indicate exceptional risk. The admission process will include a medical evaluation, security classification, and location definition based on criminological reports.
However, Galeano's lawyer, Luis Almada, contested his client's transfer to the former Tacumbú, calling the facility the least suitable. Almada argued that Galeano is a colon cancer survivor and that the family requested he be sent to a center with better sanitary conditions. The defense also cited risks to the former senator's physical safety, who, due to his public figure, may be targeted within the prison population. The legal strategy seeks detention at the Viñas Cue military prison or at the base of the Specialized Police Group, without asking for privileges, but rather conditions adequate for the client's health.