Vice Admiral Manuel Roberto Farías Laguna, nephew-in-law of former Secretary of the Navy José Rafael Ojeda Durán, filed an appeal for review against the ruling that denied him protection to annul his connection to the process. He is accused of leading a network of fiscal huachicol from the naval institution.
The defense requested that it be analyzed whether the criminal process should be transferred to military jurisdiction, in accordance with article 13 of the constitution. He maintains that the control judge Mario Martínez Elizondo should have carried out that analysis.
“The accusation was built on the quality of vice admiral and the functions he performed within the Navy Secretariat,” the defense said in a statement.
The appeal challenges the decision of Judge Jorge Adrián Cruz Flores, who last June denied federal protection. Now, a Collegiate Criminal Court will review the case.
Arguments against the sentence
The defense assures that neither the Attorney General’s Office (FGR) nor the ruling identify a specific order or act by Farías Laguna that demonstrates his participation in the alleged organization. The accusation, he affirms, is based on institutional hierarchy, geolocations and family ties, not on direct evidence.
He also accuses that the judge gave improper scope to a letter attributed to Fernando Rubén Guerrero Alcántar, interpreting it as a direct accusation. Furthermore, he points out that the sentence validates a collective narrative without distinguishing the specific conduct of the vice admiral.
“The appeal insists that the question remains regarding the constitutionality of article 4, section I, of the Federal Law against Organized Crime, considering that it raises problems of exhaustiveness, legality and legal certainty,” indicated the defense.
The criminal process continues in federal jurisdiction, while awaiting the resolution of the Collegiate Court.
