Mérida Expat accused of femicide

After the murder of his wife, the man spent more than 16 hours with the body.

Mérida, Yucatán.- Finally, Canadian Jean Paul L., 76, was accused of femicide, as he allegedly murdered his 85-year-old wife, and remained more than 16 hours with the body, before telling his next door neighbors of the facts.

Jean Paul L., who has been living in Mérida for 15 years, was presented before the first control judge, Antonio Bonilla Castañeda, who decreed the precautionary measure of preventive detention, so the accused will remain in the State Social Reintegration Center during the legal process.

The defense intended to get house arrest for the accused, because of his age he has that right, but Judge Bonilla Castañeda did not agree to the petition on the grounds that he does not suffer from any terminal illness.

The prosecutor charged him with the crime of femicide, on the grounds that it was a gender crime.

According to the official report, the events happened between 2:15 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on Friday Jan. 24, at the home where the couple lived in downtown Merida. It was said that the man first stabbed his wife on a sofa, in the house living room, and then hanged her with a cable. The Forensic Medical Service determined the cause of death was strangulation asphyxiation.

The prosecutor said that it was until Saturday Jan. 25, shortly after 11 am, when the foreigner left the house with blood-stained clothes, and told next door neighbors that his wife had died.

Although the foreigner speaks Spanish, he had an English translator, which caused the audience to last for more than four hours.

The defendant reserved the right to render his statement on the facts that are imputed to him and requested the extension of the term so that his legal situation is resolved.

The control judge set the holding of the bonding hearing for Feb. 1st.

Source: Novedades Yucatán