35
b)
On January 14, 2002, in her expanded report, she added that María Isabel had
dated a youth who belonged to a mara (youth gang) and was thinking of ending the
relationship. Mrs. Franco recounted that she did not know with which of the two men
she was suspicious of her daughter had gone on the day she disappeared. She also
indicated that she suspected one of her daughter’s girlfriends, because María Isabel’s
co-workers had told her that she had called her the day she disappeared, 120 and
c)
During the public hearing before the Court on May 15, 2013, she mentioned for
the first time that the last person who saw her daughter alive was “one of her coworkers [in the store], who saw when they took her, they forced her into a car.” She
also stated that at midday on December 17, 2001, she went to the disappeared
persons’ section of the PNC, in order to report her daughter’s disappearance.
However, according to her, the State officials did not allow her to make an official
report; they told her to come back later, and then stated that they could not attend
her because she had to wait from 24 to 72 hours before filing a report. 121 These
elements are not found within the factual framework of the Merits Report.
95.
The State’s inaction. There is no record in the case files provided by the parties
that State officials or agencies made an effort to look for María Isabel Veliz Franco on
December 17, 2001. In particular, there is no record that this was done after Mrs. Franco
filed an official report at 4 p.m. on December 17, 2001. Furthermore, the body of evidence
does not show that any actions were taken the following day, other than those carried out
as a result of the discovery of the corpse. The only record in the case file is the report filed
by Rosa Elvira Franco before the PNC Investigation Service on December 17, 2001.
96.
Discovery of the corpse. On December 18, 2001, the operator on duty received an
anonymous telephone call indicating that there was a corpse on Avenue 21 in front of 4-48,
Zone 8 of Mixco, San Cristóbal II; accordingly, she sent out a message through the central
dispatch service of the 16th Precinct for the pertinent authorities to go there. At 2 p.m.
police agents arrived at the said address and, at 2.15 p.m., they found the body of a
woman in the undergrowth of a vacant lot at that address and therefore telephoned the
authorities of the Public Prosecution Service. These authorities arrived at 2.30 p.m. and,
subsequently, at 3.20 p.m., Site Inspection Unit I-005 arrived to take the corresponding
steps, completing this procedure with the transfer of the corpse to the morgue in police
vehicle No. 16-045 at 3.45 p.m., according to the State agents. 122
97.
Removal of the corpse. At 2.30 p.m. on December 18, 2001, the Assistant
Prosecutor arrived to supervise the removal of the corpse, and at 2.45 p.m., proceeded to
try to identify the corpse which, according to the authorities who intervened, showed signs
of violence (infra para. 99). The body was not identified immediately, but was called “XX”
because no identify document was found.123 The Assistant Prosecutor’s record of the
120
Cf. Expansion of statement and ratification of complaint of Rosa Elvira Franco Sandoval before Agency No.
32 of the Public Prosecution Service of Guatemala City of January 14, 2002 (file of attachments to the Merits
Report, annex 7, fs. 75 to 82).
121
Cf. Statement made by Rosa Elvira Franco Sandoval during the public hearing held before the Court on
May 15, 2013.
122
Cf. Note No. 1,131-2001 of December 18, 2001, issued by the Head of Sub-Station 1651 of the National
Civil Police addressed to the Assistant Prosecutor of the Public Prosecution Service of the municipality of Mixco (file
of attachments to the Merits Report, annex 2, f. 57). Although the evidence does not reveal a specific document
recording the first telephone call, there is no dispute between the State and the representatives that it was
received. The evidence includes Note. No. 1,131-2001, recording the communication made to the central dispatch
service of the 16th Precinct about the discovery of the body. In addition, during the public hearing, both the
representatives and the State referred to the first telephone call that informed the authorities of the existence of a
corpse. It should be noted, in relation to this first anonymous call, that, in its Merits Report, the Commission stated
that “what the case file does not reveal is why the authorities went to the place where the body was found:
specifically how did the central dispatch service of the 16th Precinct learn that a body had been discovered.” Merits
Report, supra, f. 33.
123
Cf. Note No. 1,131-2001, supra.