May
Human Rights
Family discovers his relative’s corpse was handcuffed and showed signs of torture
(ORIGINAL EN ESPAÑOL AQUI)
His name was Luis Iván Mejía Bonilla, he was 30 years old, and he was the father of a girl. His relatives, some of them living in the USA, were told by (salvadoran) authorities that they should go to the Santa Teresa Hospital. However, upon arrival, they were told the young man had died of the coronavirus and they should hurry to bury him.
(…) They were told a wake was not possible because of the cause of death: Covid-19. It was last May 7. However, the medical report stated that a hemorrhage was the cause of the death. After all these contradictions they grew suspicious. The deceased was healthy and could not have died suddenly. For this reason, they demanded that the coffin be opened at the cemetery, as reported by the newspaper Clarín and El Salvador.com (El Diario de Hoy)
What they saw stunned them. The body was handcuffed and bruised on his arms and body, signs that he may have been tortured. Wrapped in a sheet, his face and eyes were bloody and his teeth were broken. After taking photos of him as evidence, he was buried.
After these events, his relatives reported this to the General Attorney’s Office and to the Human Rights Ombudsman for them to investigate.
Ante la contradicción entre las versiones del Hospital, PNC, IML y los familiares de Luis Iván Mejía Bonilla, de lo que podría ser una muerte natural vrs. indicios de actos de tortura y homicidio agravado es imperante y urgente su actuación Sr. Fiscal General @MelaraRaul…
— Marcela Galeas (@Marcela_Galeas) May 10, 2020
Given the contradiction between the versions of the Hospital, Police, Forensics and the relatives of Luis Iván Mejía Bonilla, of what could be a natural death vrs. evidence of torture and aggravated homicide is imperative and urgent your action Mr. Attorney General @MelaraRaul …
– Marcela Galeas (@Marcela_Galeas) May 10, 2020
They question both versions: the one from the hospital (coronavirus) and the one from the forensic report, which indicates that he died from bleeding from the digestive tract. They suspect that it was a homicide.
The reason? Luis was arrested on April 28, accused of participating in the death of a soldier a year ago. He was imprisoned since May 1 in the police bartolines of Zacatecoluca, department of La Paz with other adults. He denied the facts, as well as being a gang member.
His neighbors and the priest of the village assure that he was an honest and hard-working person. They all support the family in their request that Luis’s death be clarified.
