- Title: Argentine man accused of femicide of Chilean student
- Date: 11th November 2016
- Summary: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (NOVEMBER 11, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF DEFENDANT, LUCAS AZCONA, ACCUSED OF FEMICIDE OF CHILEAN STUDENT, NICOLE SESSAREGO BORQUEZ, WALKING INTO COURT TO HEAR SENTENCE BORQUEZ'S MOTHER, SHIRLEY BORQUEZ CACERES, AND FAMILY MEMBERS SITTING WAITING FOR THE SENTENCE TO BE READ JUDGES ARRIVING AT COURT VARIOUS OF AZCONA'S SENTENCE BEING READ, DETAILING A LIFE SENTENCE FOR THE HATE CRIME AND FEMICIDE OF BORQUEZ VARIOUS OF CACERES LISTENING TO SENTENCE VARIOUS OF AZCONA LISTENING VARIOUS OF FEDERAL PENITENTIARY AGENT TRANSFERRING THE ACCUSED TO PRISON CACERES DRYING HER TEARS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) VICTIM'S MOTHER, SHIRLEY BORQUEZ CACERES, SAYING: "I am nervous and cannot say I am happy, I am satisfied that finally justice has done its job." JORGE ADRIAN BORGO BEING INTERVIEWED (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LAWYER DEFENDING THE ACCUSED LUCAS AZCONA, JORGE ADRIAN BORGO, SAYING: "I hoped for something else, because by my criteria there were no conditions of a gender-driven hate crime because he did not hate women. Aside from this, I was surprised by something else, giving a life sentence to someone who has collaborated with justice, who handed himself in and was willing to collaborate at every moment, the fact that they gave him a life sentence will discourage other people from handing themselves over to the justice system."
- Embargoed: 26th November 2016 17:33
- Keywords: Femicide Chile Argentina Lucas Azcona
- Location: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
- City: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
- Country: Argentina
- Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Judicial Process/Court Cases/Court Decisions
- Reuters ID: LVA0015804W8Z
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: EDIT CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY 4:3
Argentine prosecutors sentenced a man to life in prison on Friday (November 11), accused of femicide against a Chilean student in 2014, less than a month after protests against gender-based violence swept the capital.
Lucas Azcona, 23, was accused of the femicide of Nicole Sessarego Borquez, 21, on July 15, 2014 in the Almagro area of Buenos Aires.
The prosecutor said that evidence showed the victim, attacked metres from her apartment, did not have time to react, and that the autopsy showed 11 stabbings in her face, neck and torso.
This comes just weeks after waves of protests in Buenos Aires spread across the continent under the slogan "Not One Less", decrying femicide and gender-based violence in the South American country after the kidnap, rape and murder of 16-year-old Lucia Perez.
Borquez's mother, Shirley Borquez Caceres, and family members were present at the reading of the sentence.
"I am nervous and cannot say I am happy, I am satisfied that finally justice has done its job," said Caceres.
Footage from security cameras shows the young woman being followed by Azcona on her way home one night.
After the images were circulated, Azcona's father handed him over to police.
Azcona's lawyer, Jorge Adrain Borgo, said he did not agree with the sentence, and that it would deter other criminals from cooperating with investigations.
"I hoped for something else, because by my criteria there were no conditions of a gender-driven hate crime because he did not hate women. Aside from this, I was surprised by something else, giving a life sentence to someone who has collaborated with justice, who handed himself in and was willing to collaborate at every moment, the fact that they gave him a life sentence will discourage other people from handing themselves over to the justice system," said Borgo.
A woman is killed once every 30 hours in Argentina, according to Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, an Argentine non-profit group. According to recent polls, violence has overtaken inflation as the main concern for Argentines. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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