14 65. On June 18, 2000, the Armed Forces issued a communication which read: At 0300 hours of 06-18-2000, when DOIF personnel together with members of the National Army stationed at the military post in Botoncillo, ordered a yellow Daihatsu truck covered with a tarp, no further description known, to stop because there was information that the truck would try to smuggle a load of drugs, the truck tried to run over the military personnel there forcing them to fire one shot into the air, and when the truck didn’t stop, the members of the patrol shot the vehicle’s tires which caused the vehicle to get into an accident, and found out that there were approximately thirty (30) Haitian nationals under the tarp, seven (7) of whom died as a result of the accident and thirteen (13) were injured, six (6) of them have gunshot wounds and eleven (11) have been 56 detained. 66. On June 18, 2000, the Commander of the 10 th Commander of the 4 Infantry Brigade: th Infantry Battalion reported to the […] members of the Border Intelligence Operations Detachment […] where engaged in an operation at the Botoncillo military checkpoint […] they ordered the driver of a yellow truck to stop […] the driver did not obey the signal to stop and […] was pursued […] during the pursuit several shots were fired with the intention of making him stop […] the truck overturned, the truck was carrying approximately (28) undocumented Haitian nationals, (8) of whom were injured and (7) died […] of the deceased (2) suffered gunshot wounds and trauma, an also some of the injured suffered gunshot wounds […] (11) Haitian nationals were unharmed, among them a minor, who were taken to the Migration Office in this city in order to be sent back to their country, the injured were taken to the hospital […] where (3) of them remained under care, lthe bodies were taken to the Forensic Institute of the city of Santiago, the officer in charge and the driver of the vehicle were taken to the J-2 Department of the Armed Forces Secretariat for questioning. […] the truck which is the subject of this file has been investigated before as being used to transport illegal individuals with al the negative consequences for the nation […] […] this vehicle was being monitored because information had been obtained that it was used to transport all kinds of contraband being brought by the illegal individuals such as drugs and 57 weapons. 67. On June 19, 2000, during the interrogation regarding the facts, Elisabeth Contreras Martínez, companion of the Dominican driver Máximo Rubén de Jesús Espinal, who had lost his life the previous day, stated that in the afternoon of June 16, 2000, “two young men dressed in military uniforms came to their house asking for some money” which Rubén gave to them. According to her statements, her companion had told her that that was the third time the military men had come to their house asking for money and that wherever they saw him they asked him for money. 58 68. On the same day, Major Lagrange stated that they had information that persons may try to smuggle drugs across, and that, before the events took place, they had detected two cars carrying weapons and that they had detained some persons; that during the pursuit of the yellow vehicle only he and Cadet Núñez had fired, and that after the truck rolled over they only fired into the air “in order to stop the persons from fleeing.”59 In addition, Cadet Núñez stated that during the pursuit, Major Lagrange fired into the air and that, afterwards, he and the major shot the tires and that once the truck overturned, 56 Note issued on June 18, 2000, by the J-2, Director of Intelligence, SEFA, entitled “Truck runs over checkpoint and then is involved in an accident.” State document dated September 20, 2010, Annex. Reference made in the note from the Attorney General of the Armed Forces to the Secretary of State of the Armed Forces. State document dated July 13, 2007. Annex. 57 Note of June 18, 2000, from the Commander of the 10th Infantry Battalion. State document dated September 20, 2010. Annex 58 Testimony of Elisabeth Contreras given in military justice proceedings on June 19, 2000. State document dated September 20, 2010. Annex. 59 Testimony of Major Lagrange given in military justice proceedings on June 19, 2000. State document dated September 20, 2010. Annex.