Former Mexican diplomat accused of obstruction of justice in Ecuador
The former head of the Foreign Ministry and Political Affairs at the Mexican embassy in Quito, Roberto Canseco, is now facing a lawsuit for obstruction of justice. The lawsuit was filed on April 16 and was only made public yesterday.
The attorney general’s office specified in a message posted on the social network United Mexican States that the complainant is Galo Monteverde and Milton Castillo appears as the complaining victim. Both Monteverde and Castillo are political activists of the Ecuadorian right, known for their involvement during the government of Rafael Correa. Monteverde is currently under investigation for the assault on the public channel EcuadorTV in 2010, while Castillo is facing criminal investigations for influence peddling.
In a statement, the prosecutor’s office indicated that Canseco, as a former diplomat, enjoys diplomatic immunity as dictated by international law. Therefore, the prosecutor’s office refrained from continuing with the procedure and ordered the Directorate of International Affairs to inform the Government of Mexico of the crime.
Canseco’s defense stated that the accusations do not correspond to his actions as he was only defending the embassy facilities. He was allegedly attacked with large caliber weapons while trying to prevent the forcible removal of former vice president Jorge Glas, to whom the Mexican government had granted political asylum.
On April 11, Mexico formalized the lawsuit against Ecuador before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The ICJ announced that hearings will be held on April 30 and May 1 to discuss the provisional measures requested by Mexico for Ecuador and is now awaiting a final ruling.