The unusual decision was made by the Supreme Court’s Transitional Trial Chamber, which ordered the lower court, which had acquitted Legislative Judge Bermejo for a third time, to be filled with other judges.
The judgment issued yesterday and yet to be published refers to the fact that the evidence against the parliamentarian and left-wing activist was not fully analyzed and evaluated in the second trial.
The judges allowed appeals to overturn the acquittal by prosecutor Gino Quiroz and counterterrorism prosecutors Milko Ruiz and Elmer Cruzado.
Bermejo is accused of being part of the Shining Path armed group, which operates sporadically in the wild area of the Apurímac, Ene and Mantaro (Vraem) rivers, and of having visited the rebels’ central camp, which he categorically denies.
During the long initial trial, he presented texts proving his political and ideological positions distinct from those of Sendero Luminoso, and his defense refuted testimonies alleging that he was a visitor to the Senderista camp because of inconsistencies.
Lawmakers from the Perú Democrático parliamentary faction faced the second trial without Congressional immunity as the alleged facts alleged against him occurred ahead of his 2021 election.
He was successful after the first acquittal was overturned, but yesterday the Supreme Court surprisingly ordered a new trial.
The verdict came at the same time as a political and media campaign accusing Bermejo, based on police versions, of being one of the sponsors of large-scale protests against the change of government in Peru, which has seen a total of 26 deaths.
Lamb/Ms