Furthermore, on an undetermined later date, the Prosecutor General's Office opened an investigation for "the alleged crime of torture committed against María Gregoria Naranjo and Marcia Lorena Núñez Naranjo."90 The State reported that, in the course of these inquiries, some procedures91 have been conducted and that the two cases are in the "preliminary investigation" stage.92 VII MERITS 63. In the instant case, the Court must analyze the international responsibility of the State to the detriment of Fredy Núñez Naranjo and his family, arising from his alleged forced disappearance as of July 15, 2001. Furthermore, it is up to this Court to examine Ecuador's international responsibility for the alleged failure to investigate and punish those responsible for the physical physical or digital information”; ii) “[the] response from the Public Works Dep[artment] of the Municipality of the Quero Canton, indicating that in th[e] works carried out in the communities of Shaushi and Puñachisag, they have not found any type of Human Remains from the years 2001 to the present”; iii) [t]he inclusion of “the [f]amily of Mr. Fredy Marcelo Núñez Naranjo [... in] the Victim and Witness Protection system”; iv) the request for information “to the Napo Forensic Department [to] report if during the years 2001 and 2002 they have found unidentified bodies NN on the banks of the Napo River”; v) the reception of “the statements of two of the main suspects, former high-ranking leaders of the Quero Peasant Boards, AV and FAJL, [who ...] have invoked the constitutional [r]ight to [s]ilence”; vi) the “pro[vision of] a [forensic anthropological] expertise, of some remains found in a Community of Chilco la Esperanza of the Tisaleo canton, neighboring canton of Quero Canton, [to analyze] if these remains have some characteristics or indications with those of the missing person to then do a DNA with the sampl[e]s of the relatives of the alleged missing person”; vii) the “pro[vision of] a study and analysis of DNA genetic profiles with samples provided by the [...] mother of the missing person[; ...] same [...] that has been compared with genetic profiles stored in the database of corpses, bone remains and remains of missing persons that exist in the Genetics Laboratory of the National Service of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences [... from which it was concluded that] there is no relationship or compatibility between [...] the DNA sample of the mother of the missing person with any of the DNA samples that are stored in [...] the laboratory”; viii) and the “coordination with the relatives of the [alleged missing person ...] to provide a [p]hoto [...] to coordinate [...] with the DINASED and once again request that they collaborate in the search, location, and recovery by all possible means, and conducting a search in all possible places and institutions to obtain some results about the location of the [alleged] missing person and his whereabouts.” Cf. Memorandum No. FPT-FCQ-2020-00078-M from the Prosecutor General's Office of December 18, 2020 (case file of evidence, pages 1556 and 1557); Memorandum No. FPT-FCQ-2021-00024-M from the Prosecutor General's Office of March 18, 2021(case file of evidence, pages 1559 to 1561), and Report No. FGE-DNSPAVT-2023-021 from the Prosecutor General's Office of February 2, 2023 (case file of evidence, pages 1793 to 1827). Likewise, the Prosecutor's Office detailed other "extended prosecutorial actions in the investigation No. 180101820060458 for an alleged crime of forced disappearance." Cf. Official Letter No. FGECGAJP-DDHPC-2023-000903-O from the Prosecutor General's Office of January 31, 2023 (case file of evidence, pages 1663 to 1675). 90 It is processed under Preliminary Investigation No. 180101820060459. Cf. Memorandum No. FPT-FCQ-2020-00078M from the Prosecutor General's Office of December 18, 2020 (case file of evidence, page 1556) and Memorandum No. FPT-FCQ-2021-00024-M from the Prosecutor General's Office of March 18, 2021 (case file of evidence, page 1560). 91 Such as: i) the "notifica[tion] as suspects to five community members from the Quero Canton, who have already appeared"; ii) the execution of "an on site visit to the place where presumably they would have been [...] without any punishment location having been identified"; iii) "[t]he compila[tion and incorporation into the] fiscal case file the Judicial Process N° 18252-2005-0383, in certified copies, due to the kidnapping of Mr. Fredy Marcelo Núñez Naranjo, was followed against several community members from Quero Canton, in this case leading to a provisional stay of proceedings by the Fourth Criminal Court of Ambato at that time," and iv) the legal medical assessment of the alleged victims in order to verify any physical sequelae that may have remained as a result of the alleged tortures they would have been subjected to, to which Mrs. Marcia Lorena Núñez Naranjo has not agreed due to the number of years that have passed and Mrs. María Gregoria Naranjo agreed, to which results were obtained indicating no external physical injuries due to the time that had elapsed. Cf. Memorandum No. FPT-FCQ-2020-00078-M from the Prosecutor General's Office of December 18, 2020 (case file of evidence, pages 1556 and 1557) and Memorandum No. FPT-FCQ-2021-00024-M from the Prosecutor General's Office of March 18, 2021 (case file of evidence, pages 1559 to 1561). Likewise, the Prosecutor's Office detailed other "extended prosecutorial actions in the investigation No. 180101820060459 for an alleged crime of torture." Cf. Official Letter No. FGECGAJP-DDHPC-2023-000903-O issued by the Prosecutor General's Office on January 31, 2023 (case file of evidence, pages 1676 to 1689). 92 Cf. Answering brief from the State, pages 38 and 57 (case file on the merits, pages 191 and 210). -21-