75
Office and to the General Directorate of the Penitentiary System, asking whether Adrián García
Manuel, Hugo García Depaz and the child Abraham (or Agapito) Alvarado Depaz had left the
country or had been detained between 1980 and 1990. 300 Given that in 2008 the remains of Hugo
García Depaz and Abraham Alvarado Depaz were identified, it is not clear why this information
was requested (supra paras. 100, 149 and 155). On the other hand, there is no record in the
case file of subsequent actions aimed at finding the remains of Adrián García Manuel or
determining his whereabouts.
241. Seventh, in File No. M.P. 247-1997-1378 before the District Prosecutor's Office of the Public
Prosecution Service of Salamá, there are records of one to five years without any investigative
activity whatsoever. 301 Furthermore, there is no record of any investigation of the complaint made
by Francisca González Tecú, who stated that in January 2010, someone had offered her money
in exchange for withdrawing her complaint against a person whom she had identified as being
responsible for the death of her father. 302
242. Regarding these points, the Court recalls that it is not its responsibility to substitute the
domestic jurisdiction by establishing the specific procedures for the investigation and prosecution
of a specific case to obtain a better or more effective result, but rather to verify whether, in the
course of the measures taken in the domestic sphere, the State violated its international
obligations arising from Articles 8 and 25 of the American Convention. 303 However, in the instant
case, it is clear that the investigations in relation to the events that occurred before and after the
massacre of January 8, 1982 were late and incomplete, showing a lack of due diligence in the
investigation of the facts.
B.2. Failure to investigate serious human rights violations
243. The Court emphasizes that the facts of this case concern forced disappearances and forced
displacement (supra paras. 160 and 203), as well as alleged executions, acts of torture, violence,
rape, and forced labor, among others (supra paras. 222, 228, 234 and 239), all within a context
of serious, massive and systematic human rights violations in Guatemala (supra paras. 76 to 81).
These facts have been brought to the attention of the State on several occasions since 1993;
Cf. Official letters of the assistant prosecutor of the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rabinal of March 20 and 26, 2015
(evidence file, folios 11735 and 11737). On March 26, 2015, the Sub-directorate of Migratory Control of the General
Directorate of Immigration indicated that none of the three persons appear to have migratory movements. Cf. Official
letter of the Sub-directorate of Migratory Control of the General Directorate of Immigration addressed to the assistant
prosecutor of the Public Prosecution Service of Rabinal, Baja Verapaz of March 26, 2015 (evidence file, folios 11753 to
11756).
301
These periods occurred between: i) September 2005 and January 2010; ii) October 2010 and October 2011; iii)
October 2011 and December 2012, and iv) March 2012 and March 2013. On September 22, 2005, the FAFG delivered
to the assistant prosecutor five caskets containing six incomplete skeletons, and that same day the remains were handed
over to Francisca González Tecú and William Misael Ixtecoc Xitumul. On January 11, June 14 and October 26, 2010, Mrs.
González Tecú again testified before the assistant prosecutor. On December 8, 2012, the judge of the Criminal Court of
First Instance authorized the exhumation of the body of Gorgonio Gonzalez as requested by the assistant prosecutor on
October 26, 2011. On March 12, 2012 Mrs. González Tecú informed the assistant prosecutor that “nothing was found”
in the exhumation carried out on March 7, 2012, and asked that he again request the respective judge for authorization
to excavate in three points within the same area and thus find her father’s body. On December 22, 2014, the Public
Prosecution Service received from the FAFG the “Expert opinion of the Forensic Anthropological Investigation conducted
in the Cemetery of San Francisco, Hamlet Chuateguá”. Cf. Official letter of the FAFG of September 22, 2005 (evidence
file, folio 1581); statement of Francisca González Tecú of October 26, 2010 (evidence file, folio 9232); statement of
Francisca González Tecú of January 11, 2010 (evidence file, folios 9243 and 9244); statement of Francisca González
Tecú of December 22, 2014 (evidence file, folio 9245); brief of the assistant prosecutor of the District Prosecutor’s Office
of Salamá of October 26, 2012 (evidence file, folios 9130 and 9231); statement of Francisca González Tecú of March 12,
2012 (evidence file, folio 9204), and FAFG Report of June 5, 2014 (evidence file, folios 9247, 9250, 9252, 9270 and
9276).
302
Cf. Statement of Francisca González Tecú of January 11, 2010 (evidence file, folios 9243 and 9244).
303
Cf. Case of Nogueira de Carvalho et al. v. Brazil. Preliminary objections and Merits. Judgment of November 28, 2006.
Series C No. 161, para. 80, and Case of Velásquez Paiz et al. v. Guatemala. Preliminary objections, merits, reparations and
costs. Judgment of November 19, 2015. Series C No. 307, para. 169.
300