Alleged Killer in Canadian Mining Company Lawsuit Acquitted in Guatemala
A Guatemalan court today acquitted Mynor Padilla of murdering Guatemalan community leader and indigenous activist Adolfo Ich in 2009, when Padilla was the head of security for a large mine in Guatemala then owned by Canadian company Hudbay Minerals. Padilla was also acquitted of the point blank shooting of another community member German Chub...Ich's wife and others are pursuing a lawsuit against Hudbay Minerals in Canada regarding these incidents..."The Guatemalan legal system is corrupt and seeking justice there is, sadly, hopeless...That's precisely why Angelica's and German's best hope for justice against Hudbay has always been in Canadian courts." In addition to the acquittal, the Guatemalan judge went much farther into unexpected territory by asking for the extreme step that criminal charges be brought against most of those involved in the prosecution of Mynor Padilla...The "not guilty" verdict comes despite damning eyewitness testimony of the murder, and ballistic and forensic evidence...The acquittal of Mynor Padilla has raised fears that the victims and their families may be subject to acts of retaliation and violence for their role in pursuing justice...A Canadian court issued a landmark decision in 2013 allowing the case to proceed against Hudbay in Ontario...