Chief of Operations: "It was a working group with little experience in fighting incidents"
- The chief of operations, who was an officer at UGARTEKO ' s orders, has not been considered to be the most responsible for what happened, although the six defendants have declared themselves against. Most of the Ertzainas, belonging to the Department of Citizen Security, were unaware of the use of the shotgun to launch balls and the measures of use.
The first session of the Cabacas case was full of contradictions. Six years later, six Ertzainas sat yesterday at the Audience of Bizkaia, in the first attempt to clarify the murder of Iñigo Cabacas. They accuse the six of “serious recklessness”, but most of them have said that the operative police of that day was “the right and proper”, that there were a lot of people and that it was the “only way to take control”.
A statement has given much to talk about. The officer who could be considered head of the operation, currently retired, has denounced the lack of experience of the group, involving himself in the operation. The officer, ertzaina of citizen security in Bilbao, had been “years” without “stepping on the street”. Many of those who went with him were also citizens' security, so they "had little experience in the fight against disturbances", he explained. Some did not know how to use the shotgun to throw the balls, nor the basic measures to use them.
“I was not a fan of entering.”
I was at Ugarte's command. The officer was always in contact with the head of the operation, who was at the headquarters of Deusto. Before the agents arrived at Indautxu, a fight had begun between the fans of the two teams. The order of UGARTEKO was that María Díaz de Haro went to the street and didn't leave for a moment from the van. He was also ordered to take control of the position with the shotguns to shoot the balls, but according to the statement of the officer, this action was carried out in a “controlled” manner. When the atmosphere was calm, Ugarte told him, but he told Ugarte to enter the Herriko Taberna. “I was not in favour of entering; if it were for me, we would have gone,” said the officer.
However, despite being at Ugarte's command, he was the same person responsible for what was going on there and had the ability to avoid shooting. He acknowledged that he was unable to do so because he could not be "attentive to everything".
Asked also about the use of the plateaus, the officer pointed out that this is a "mistake". In their view, it would be much more appropriate to use more personal resources and to take control of the situation with the batons. On the other hand, he said that the access of the Ertzaintza vans to "a bar with a nationalist atmosphere" implies going in search of more incidents and, therefore, it was a "mistake" or a "desire to kill".
“We had experience”
Yesterday’s sitting also declared those responsible for vans, 13th and 14.zenbakidun. The two have wanted to deny that it was an inexperienced team, as the officer said. The non-commissioned officer 14.eko said he had participated in “hundreds of such operations,” “like all other agents.” 13.eko the officer corroborates what the other said, but he wanted to justify himself by saying that “I didn’t have the order to cast him out of the pile.”
The trial will continue today and tomorrow with the testimony of the witnesses, who will pass today ten and tomorrow many others before the courtroom. With the statements of these three defendants, the other sessions of the case will be back next week.
Abenduaren 15ean Ertzaintzak artxibatu egin zuen Cabacasen hilketari buruzko barne ikerketa, eta gurasoek gutun batean adierazi dute “harridura eta atsekabea” eragin ziela erabakiak. Josu Erkoreka Jaurlaritzako Segurtasun sailburuari leporatu diote euren samina... [+]
Eusko Jaurlaritzako Segurtasun sailburu Josu Erkorekak azaldu duenez, sei auzipetuei ezin zaie ardura diziplinariorik eskatu, haietako bost (Juan José de Pablo 'Ugarteko' ertzainburua tartean) jada ez direlako funtzionarioak, eta seigarrenak, tiro egiteko agindua... [+]
Iñigo Cabasen heriotzagatik kondenatutako ertzainak ez du kartzelara sartu behar izango, baina lau urteko inhabilitazioa ezarri dio Bizkaiko Lurralde Auzitegiko epaimahaiak.
