Argentina Seeks Life Sentence for Ex-naval Officer

[Judi Lynn]

Argentina Seeks Life Sentence for Ex-naval Officer
07 May 2011

A government lawyer called Friday for a life sentence for former Argentine naval officer Alfredo Astiz for crimes including the murder of two French nuns during the 1976-1983 dictatorship.

"I consider him to be jointly responsible for the crimes of kidnapping in 12 cases, jointly responsible for the crime of aggravated torture and aggravated murder in five cases," said Martin Rico, a lawyer for the Human Rights Ministry, in the trial for crimes committed at the notorious Naval Mechanics School (ESMA).

The 59-year-old Astiz, nicknamed the Blond Angel of Death, has already been tried and sentenced to life in absentia by a French court for the murder of Alice Domon and Leonie Duquet, who disappeared in December 1977, reports AFP.

Ten human rights activists were also abducted at the time.

More:
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/argentina-seeks-life-sentence-for-ex-naval-officer/90930/

http://www.france24.com.nyud.net:8090/en/files/imagecache/france24_ct_player_thumbnail/article/image/astiz1.jpg

Alfredo Astiz
Latest update: 12/12/2009 - Argentina - justice

‘Blond Angel of Death’ goes on trial over ‘dirty war’ torture

~snip~
Astiz drew attention for his alleged involvement in the detention and disappearance of several foreigners, including the two French nuns and Swedish-Argentinian teenager Dagmar Hagelin.

He is one of the rare former military officers to still justify the “dirty war” and brag about torture and kidnapping techniques used during the dictatorship.

Astiz is accused of having infiltrated the "Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo" group, a non-violent association representing the mothers of disappeared individuals, under the false name Gustavo Nino, brother of a vanished person.

His infiltration led to the arrest of the group’s three founding members and Domon. Duquet was detained two days later. None of them were ever seen again.

For many years, Astiz was thought to be among the scores of vanished members. In 1977 he tried to infiltrate the Argentinian community in exile in France, but escaped after he was recognised.

More:
http://www.france24.com/en/20091208-blond-angel-death-astiz-war-torture-disappeared-argentina#