CCPR/C/127/D/2760/2016 2.20 On 7 January 2012, the court issued a detention order in respect of Javier Rodríguez Peña, which was confirmed on 17 January 2013 after the lodging of an appeal. On 10 January 2012, a detention order was issued in respect of Honorio Corcuera, Margarito González and Irene Méndez Graf. The first two lodged an appeal but the detention order was confirmed on 17 April 2013. Irene Méndez Graf hired a lawyer and lodged an application for amparo on the grounds that she was not in Chacahua at the time of the alleged homicide. On 12 June 2012, the court revoked the detention order issued in respect of Irene Méndez Graf and, on 2 July 2012, an order for her release was issued for lack of evidence to proceed.21 The other three defendants are still in prison. 2.21 The father of the disappeared person continued to search for his son. He met two people who told him that they had seen his son in Chacahua on 6 August 2011, almost a month after the alleged homicide. The police officer in charge of the investigation refused to take a statement from them and told the father of the disappeared person not to return to Oaxaca or he would be killed.22 The same police officer offered money to the nephew of Javier Rodríguez Peña, who is a minor, to testify about the circumstances in which Mr. Moreno Pérez’s voter identification card was found: “Officer Juan told me that if I said that my mum had it under the bed, he would give me 5,000 pesos and get my uncle out of jail; he told me to sign and to give my fingerprints; I don’t know what I signed”.23 Complaints and administrative sanctions against officials from the Office of the Attorney General for Oaxaca State (now the Office of the Prosecutor General for Oaxaca State) for irregularities that occurred during the investigation 2.22 The father of the disappeared person filed a complaint against various officials who took part in the investigations. On 11 January 2013, administrative proceedings were initiated before the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Crimes Committed by Public Officials, attached to the Office of the Attorney General for Oaxaca State. 24 2.23 On 29 January 2014, the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office described these procedural omissions, the failure to comply with the obligation to investigate, the abuse of authority, the falsified statements and the crimes against peace and security of person as serious offences. Consequently, it suspended several officials from the Prosecution Service and several judicial police officers for 30 or 90 days without pay. 25 After the opening of another preliminary investigation on 22 February 2015, the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office suspended the then Deputy Regional Attorney General of La Costa for 90 days without pay and a number of experts for 30 or 90 days without pay. The complaint 3.1 The authors submit that the necessary conditions have been met for the exception to the rule of exhaustion of domestic remedies, provided for in article 5 (2) (b) of the Optional Protocol, to apply, since, despite them having filed complaints with the competent judicial authorities, a prompt, impartial, thorough and independent investigation has not been opened and the investigation has been unreasonably prolonged, with the result that these remedies have not led to the whereabouts of the victim being established or those truly responsible being identified.26 3.2 The authors allege a violation, in respect of Mr. Moreno Pérez, of article 6 (1) of the Covenant, read alone and in conjunction with article 2 (3), and request the Committee to apply its jurisprudence according to which the term “enforced disappearance” may be used broadly to cover disappearances committed by forces that are independent of the State. 21 22 23 24 25 26 GE.19-21673 assisting him, when the offender uses certain devices to debilitate the victim, and when the victim is defenceless and on the ground while the offender is armed and standing up. The authors enclose a copy of the application for amparo. The authors enclose a copy of complaint No. 138(FESP)/2013 of 12 June 2013 concerning threats and abuse of authority, filed by Mr. Moreno Zamora. The authors enclose a copy of the statement of Francisco Javier Domínguez Rodríguez, dated 28 December 2013. Administrative case file 09/VIS.GRAL/2013. The authors enclose a copy of the report of the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for Crimes Committed by Public Officials, dated 29 January 2014, pp. 9, 12, 18–19, 21–23, 26 and 31. T.K. v. France (CCPR/C/37/D/220/1987), para. 8.2. 5