Mr. Deras' whereabouts. Both stated that Lieutenant Marco Tulio Regalado was in charge of the interrogations. − That same day, Mr. Deras' brother, Luis Rolando, was detained by State agents and taken to the DNI facilities. He said he was threatened and "tortured physically." He said they told him they were going to find and murder his brother Herminio "because he was a communist." 1982 − On January 1, Mr. Deras' home was machine-gunned by unknown individuals. − During the year, Mr. Deras' home was kept under watch by "covert agents" from an unoccupied house nearby, who fired shots at his house. C. Regarding Mr. Deras' death and subsequent events to the detriment of his family 13. According to statements by the petitioners and Irma Deras, Mr. Deras' sister, on January 26, 1983 Herminio asked his father whether they could swap cars. That was because the traffic police had stopped him and taken down the number of his license plate. They said that Mr. Deras had stated that "he was frightened they would capture and disappear him." They added that Mr. Deras' father had refused and had asked his son to "leave the country as soon as possible."10 14. Early in the morning of January 29, 1983, Herminio Deras was driving his car in the Las Flores district of San Pedro Sula when he was intercepted by traffic officer Fausto Reyes. According to Mr. Reyes' statement that day "a document registration operation was mounted" on orders from Captain Rafael Canales Núñez, the officer in charge of Intelligence Battalion 3-16. Mr. Reyes stated that Captain Canales had told him that said operation “was a special mission" designed to "arrest a 'terrorist' and hand him over to the Security Forces." He added that the officer in charge of that mission was Lieutenant Marco Tulio Regalado. 15. Mr. Reyes states that while “I was routinely checking" Mr. Deras' vehicle,” a vehicle stopped (...) from which "two (...) members of military counterintelligence, known as Battalion 3-16, got out." He said that one of those two officers was Lieutenant Marco Tulio Regalado and that they got into Mr. Deras' vehicle. He stated that “it was rumored that Marco Tulio was sick, incapable of living without killing someone (...) I personally know that he is a very violent man." 16. He maintained that when he asked Lieutenant Marco Tulio Regalado why they were going to take him away, he had answered "on orders from above." He explained that he saw Mr. Deras driving the car with the two officers. Mr. Reyes said that a few moments later, while he was buying coffee at a nearby market, he heard a gunshot. He stated that when he arrived at the scene, "there was Mr. Herminio, dead, inside the car on the street."11 17. The Commission likewise notes that Irma Isabel Deras declared as follows regarding the death of her brother: [Herminio Deras] struggled with his captors, who wanted to get him into the vehicle; when they couldn't they shot him. We counted 30 bullet wounds on his body. (…). When they were struggling, Herminio shouted to a taxi driver going by to let his family know what was happening, but that taxi driver was threatened by the man on the motorbike. We know this because he sent us a note telling us, but he did not sign it so we could not locate him (...) Now that Mr. Fausto Reyes has made his statements public, it is my understanding that it was he who got Herminio out of the car and handed him over to those who murdered him.12 18. The IACHR also observes that an article in the La Tribuna newspaper had the following to say about Mr. Deras' death: Annex 1. Statement by Irma Isabel Deras García, on August 12, 1998. Attached to judicial file 7159-02. Communication from the petitioners, February 2, 2014 11 Annex 1. Testimony of Fausto Reyes Caballero, October 28, 1998. Attached to judicial file 7159-02. 12 Annex 1. Statement by Irma Isabel Deras García, on August 12, 1998. Attached to judicial file 7159-02. 10 4