Two days ago, Maduro presented video evidence regarding the murder of Robert Serra and his partner, Maria Herrera. Maduro showed two videos: one showing the alleged break-in into Serra’s home, and the other showing an alleged confession from one of the murderers.
Maduro’s style of speech is often rambling and winding. I’ve tried to do my best to translate as literally as possible what Maduro says during the videos.
The two videos are shown below, along with my translation.
Video #1: The Break-In
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbJ88w6y6vg
Let’s watch this first video, please. Let’s watch it. It’s a summary. 11 minutes long. Here come, as you can see, Torres Camacho, who sells Robert Serra out. He goes first, opens the door. With “El Colombia”, the head of the “El Colombia Gang” – Padilla Leiva, whose identity we already know. They open the door, he knows how to open it – they force it open. One of the murderers goes in, and there are three inside already. Four, five, six. Look at the time: it started at 2:28.
Here, this is a camera that shows [the suspects] looking around upstairs for the first time. Robert was upstairs. It’s a two story house. 21:32… now… [someone speaks, inaudible] correct. They go in, they look around. We know thanks to the cameras that were upstairs who went up. And they come up. 21:33. The crime has been committed. The crime was committed in five minutes. Six minutes. The whole video is 11 minutes long, when they arrive, they etner, and exit, 11 minutes. They commit the crime. They go in to kill. They subdue – if I may, I’m sorry for saying this, because I need to say it – they subdue Maria Herrara, Robert’s fellow fighter, on the main floor, with tape. They then immediately kill her… the murder, committed with a sharp object, first of Maria and then of Robert… they go up, they subdue Robert upstairs, and they kill him directly without saying a word.
As you know, we have all this evidence. I want to show the video again. So that you can see. It’s a video that lasts 11 minutes. All the videos last 11 minutes. From the time they enter… we were able to identify the killers early on. Let’s show the video, please. [Video starts again] They’re arriving now. The one who arrives is Torres Camacho, the head bodyguard, who was bought out three months earlier and who prepared, directly with “El Colombia”. They both enter. Then, in sequence, El Eme, El Tintin, El Oreja, and Salina Quevedo enter. There are six of them. There are two drivers waiting in their cars. They have been identified. There are 8. They’re exploring here. Pay attention to the time: six minutes have passed. This is Torres Camacho. 21;34. Look, :34 – six minutes, six and a half minutes have passed. This video, six minutes have passed, and it captures the moment of our young martyr.
We’ve prepared this video – look, 21:37 – they’re coming out now, with the computers, the CPUs, thinking that, having the data of the security system designed by Robert himself, having that data, they thought they had neutralized this safety measure. Look, 21:38, now it’s ten minutes since the start of this assassination operation. The last ones leave, they close the door… almost 11 minutes, from the time they enter to when the come out. They didn’t have… well, they abandoned the motorcycle key, and they start it as they say “by pushing”, and they leave.
A brutal, brutal murder.
Video #2: The Confession
This second video allegedly shows the confession of Edwin Torres Camacho, Serra’s head of security and alleged conspirator.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAuigm0HuX0
Maduro: … present a second video, also, where one of the murderers – we can say, direct [murderer] – who planned hard for three months and tried to fake alibis. He had the alibi that he was working at his university at that time. And more alibis which, well, all of the ones they faked were found out thanks to our security forces. I want to congratulate our security and investigative forces – the SEBIN and the CICPC – for working together, our police professionals, who are doing a professional, detailed and scientific job on all the crimes in this country, but specially on a crime with political connotations with the objective of shaking up society and filling it with violence through a chain of events and crimes.
I’m going to present this second video where Torres Camacho, a.k.a. “El Poli” – the murderer – tells part of the story, and also says that the other detained person, Garcia Martinez Carlos Enrique, a.k.a. “El Tintin”, participated in the murder. Let’s watch the second video, please. And give it volume, because the sound quality isn’t very good. But I consider it important to present the murderers and parts of the statements they’ve made. Go ahead.Man With Blurred Face: … “El Tintin”, one of the people who participated in the death of the citizen Robert Serra. Everything started three months ago. [inaudible] Deputy Robert Serra, and then “Colombia” came up to me, who was one of the people who killed the deputy. He says, “What’s up? Everything good?”, and I said, “Yeah, I’m just having a normal discussion with my boss”, and he tells me that [inaudible]… starting from Wednesday of last week we started talking about what would happen that day. From there, on a Sunday, we drove around with the deputy on a red and black pick up truck. Then, on Monday, two days before the deputy’s death, they gave me a cell phone which they said we’d use that day. The day of the event, Wednesday, the motorcycle left me at [inaudible], I picked him up, and I go up to La Pastora [neighbourhood] and meet “Colombia”. He goes on the motorcycle with me and we go to the deputy’s house. When we get there, we [inaduble] the door with the same motorcycle key, we force the lock and then “Colombia” goes in behind me. After that, he goes in front of me and neutralizes Maria [Herrera], and then everyone else went in. The other four – Eme, [inaudible], Oreja and Tintin. At that time, I walk towards the kitchen, and Colombia goes upstairs with Tintin and that’s when they met Robert. They put him in his study, and from there I saw they grabbed his neck… I think Tintin was on top of Robert with a knife. The deputy was gagged, and was lethally wounded.
Then, when he [“Colombia”] came down, “Tintin” also came downstairs with the [inaudible] in their hands. I came downstairs last, and I saw that “Colombia” was on top of Maria, I didn’t see him do anything to her, but I saw that he was on top of her. From there, they said, “Let’s go!”, and we started to leave. When we were leaving the house, I went back because I wanted to open the door. I opened the door [inaudible]. From there, they went out and I [inaudible] because I didn’t have the motorcycle key in my pocket. After I went out, because I couldn’t find the key, I had to push the key. Tintin came out last, and we went down the street two blocks. I left Tintin, the person who lives in front [?], and I don’t know where he went. He went his own way and I went down the street three blocks. I left the motorcycle there somewhere, and then I took a taxi back to my home.
Opinion
There is one noteworthy thing about Maduro presenting evidence on the Serra case. It is the fact that he does not have the authority to present evidence on the Serra case, nor any other case. Maduro is not a judge. He is not a lawyer. He is the President of the Republic. He has as much right to go on television and present evidence on an active criminal investigation as I do. He has as much credibility as I do in these matters – that is to say, none. It is neither his job nor mine to carry out, present or deliberate on criminal investigations.
This is an important point because nothing Maduro said holds any weight. Whenever Maduro goes on television and talks about ongoing criminal investigations (e.g., the one against Leopoldo Lopez), we are asked to believe whatever evidence he presents on faith alone. Simply put, we have to take his word for it. We have every right to refuse to do so, because people often lie or are misinformed.
The way societies get around this problem is by creating and upholding impartial justice systems. A fair and impartial justice system presumes everyone is innocent until proven guilty in court. An impartial judge hears evidence presented by a prosecuting and defence council. The evidence presented is scrutinized. If the evidence is collected illegally, or if it is not relevant to the case, it can be ruled inadmissible. Through the rigours of cross-examination, the credibility of evidence is established. The judge – and when applicable, the jury – deliberates on the evidence presented, and then rule on the guilt or innocence of the accused. The accused are not, and cannot, be considered guilty until a court has found them guilty.
Yet, Maduro is allowed to go on television and proclaim guilt as a judge would without having to follow any legal procedure. Every time Maduro goes on television, presents “evidence” and accuses people of crimes, he is acting outside the boundaries of the law and causing serious damage to the fabric of Venezuelan society and its sickly justice system.
It is also worth mentioning that Maduro has yet to present any evidence regarding the hundreds of murders that have claimed the lives of Venezuelans throughout the country since October 1. What makes this murder special? Why focus so much attention on this particular case? By blaming the nebulous enemies of the state for the murder, Maduro has shown his hand. This case is special because it can and is being used to demonize the opposition and rally the base.
In Venezuela 