[T]hey swore at us and made us get on the launch .... One of them boarded our boat and he recognized the deceased, saying “Shoot! This is the Casierra.” He crossed back onto their boat and they made a movement as if they wanted to get away, but one of them who seemed older than the others said that they should not run and that it would be better if they waited. Then, as we were there with the dead man, we asked them to take us to Atacames, which was closer than Esmeraldas. They did not want that and preferred to tow us. Later we came across two boats that were fishing and they transferred the wounded, including me, onto one of them, while the other took our boat under tow. Upon arriving at the port, one of them went to look for the pickup truck. They took us from the port to the hospital. At the hospital they dropped off the three wounded, me included, and they went with the others to the morgue. They did not return and I never saw them again.”14 30. For its part, the State held in its most recent brief, of July 2016, that, "according to the investigations done by the internal authorities," in the framework of the military system of justice, it was determined: On December 8, 1999, ... Messrs. Angulo Cuero José, Espinoza Zurita Freddy, and Franco Estrada Manuel, all of whom are Navy personnel, were taking part in an anti-crime operation ordered by the Esmeraldas harbormaster's office in response to an alert from the Esmeraldas fishermen's committee regarding the presence of a vessel that was reportedly being used for illegal activities. In that context, the Navy patrol spotted the vessel that Luis Eduardo Casierra Quiñonez, Andrés Casierra Quiñonez, and other individuals were on, whereupon they proceeded to sound the siren and turn on their lights, in response to which they started receiving small arms fire from the vessel, which then made to get away. In response to that aggression, the navy patrol repelled the attack by shooting at the boat’s engine with the aim of disabling it; in consequence, the driver was hit and the boat eventually came to a stop as a result. Next, the Navy personnel proceeded to board the boat in order to detain the vessel and its crew. The vessel and its crew were immediately taken to the harbormaster’s office in the port of Esmeraldas, from where the wounded, including Luis and Andrés Casierra Quiñonez were taken to hospital ... where it was verified that Luis Eduardo Casierra Quiñonez was dead.15 31. The Ecuadorian State also reported that three of the fishermen who were in the boat with the Casierra brothers were handed over to the judicial police in Esmeraldas. It added that they were released on December 10, 1999, after a habeas corpus petition was filed with the office of the mayor.16 The IACHR has no information as to whether or not criminal proceedings were instituted against the fishermen who were in the boat with the Casierra brothers. C. The investigation of the incident 32. On December 8, 1999, a medico-legal autopsy was performed on Luis Eduardo Casierra Quiñonez, in which it was concluded that the cause of his death was “acute internal hemorrhage caused by ... the impact of a firearm projectile that entered in the lumbar vertebrae region.”17 33. The following day, at Eugenio Espejo Hospital it was determined that Andrés Alejandro’s condition was stable.18 34. On December 13, 1999, a visual inspection was conducted in which it was concluded that: (i) the vessel used by the Ecuadorian Navy had "two holes in the upper part of the bow and another in the lower part of the kennel hatch next to the seat;” (ii) in the boat that the Casierra brothers were on “one could see a large number of holes caused by firearms projectiles”; and (iii) that the following fishing equipment was found: a gray tub; a rusty machete, and a buoy.19 The IACHR notes that that inspection did not find any firearms on the vessel that the Casierra brothers were on. There is also no information in the record to suggest that weapons were confiscated from the fishermen on the day of the incident. Annex 1, Statement of Freddy Eloy Zambrano Quiñonez, December 13, 1999. Annex 1, record 07-2000, p. 28. State's communication of July 15, 2016. 16 State's communication of July 15, 2016. 17Annex 1, Medico-legal autopsy, December 8, 1999, Annex 1, record 07-2000, p. 88. 18 Annex 1, Medical certificate from Eugenio Espejo Hospital, December 9, 1999, Annex 1, record 07-2000, p. 99. 19 Annex 1, Police report No. 1385-P.J.-E, December 17, 1999, Annex 1, record 07-2000, pp. 15-16. 14 15 4