By EFE APRIL 8, 2020 4:21 PM
The office of the attorney general of California, Xavier Becerra, assured this Wednesday that the case against the leader of the church La Luz del Mundo, Nassón Joaquín García, is still pending and that they will continue with the accusations.
In a statement sent to Efe, the Prosecutor's Office referred to the decision of the Los Angeles-based California Court of Appeals, which on Tuesday dismissed the charges against Joaquín García alleging failures in the procedure.
"The decision did not address the merits of the case and does not limit our ability to move forward, which we intend to do," the statement warns.
Joaquín García has been detained since June 3, 2019 without bail and his lawyers had filed an appeal in the Court of Appeals.
The ruling given by three judges determines that, because the preliminary hearing of Joaquín García was not carried out in an expedited manner and that the accused did not renounce that right, the charges should be dismissed.
The court order overrides two Los Angeles Superior Court orders denying multiple requests from the defendant's attorneys to drop the charges, in September and October 2019.
In this sense, Becerra's office warns that "the decision of the Court of Appeals is not final for 30 days from when it was issued and that the accused is still in custody."
Joaquín García, a 51-year-old Mexican, was charged with more than 26 crimes, including human trafficking, child pornography, and child rape.
At least three of the alleged sexual victims of the leader of the powerful church, which is based in the Mexican city of Guadalajara, are underage girls, according to the accusation made by Becerra's office.
Alondra Ocampo, Susana Medina Oaxaca and Azalea Rangel Meléndez, about whom there is a search and arrest warrant, are also accused in the case.
The Court of Appeals order does not include the case against women.
In a statement sent Tuesday night, Alan Jackson, attorney for the leader of La Luz del Mundo, said that the ruling in favor of his client was "an acknowledgment of the violation of the constitutional rights of Joaquín García, to have a trial expedited and a reasonable deposit.
"In his zeal to secure a sentence at any cost, the authority has deprived Mr. Naasón Joaquín García of his freedom without due process, since he has deprived him of his freedom without bail based on unfounded accusations made by accusers not named ”, considered Jackson.
For her part, Deborah Mallgrave, lawyer for Sochil Martín, a former member of the church who filed a civil lawsuit against Joaquín García and 10 other members of the congregation last February, said in a statement that the woman is willing to continue her case. filed in federal court.
Mallgrave clarified that the opinion of the Court of Appeals does not judge Joaquín García for his guilt or innocence.
"It does nothing to change the fact that for years, as leader of The Light of the World, he sexually, physically and emotionally abused hundreds of minors and adults," said the lawyer.
Article Courtesy of The San Diego Union-Tribune and EFE