Vélez Footballers Cufré, Osorio, Florentín, and Sosa: Latest Updates on Legal Battle and House Arrest

2024-03-21 22:11:31
Cufré, Osorio and Florentín, in court. And Sebastian Sosa

At lunch they encouraged each other. The four of them together, with their lawyers, and each having received a visit from only one family member or friend, which is what Justice has allowed them until now. The wife was in Sosa’s case; a close friend to Florentín and Cufré; and Osorio’s father. Thus, the day after the court decision, the Vélez footballers recovered a spirit that has more to do with the promise of the lawyers, who assured them that they have enough tools to turn the situation around, than with the present reality of each one of them.

A different feeling than the one they had as soon as they heard the judicial decision, when they looked at their disoriented lawyers. It was already late in the morning when they learned that they would not be going to a regular prison, which truly terrified them, but also that they had lost hope of returning to Buenos Aires immediately.

Because three of them, Braian Cufré, José Florentín Bobadilla and Abiel Osorio will have house arrest for 90 days, while Sebastián Sosa will continue the process in freedom, but for that to happen there are still a couple of days left.

The difference is that the first two were accused of sexual abuse aggravated by the commission of two or more people (this means that they committed the alleged crime at the same time against the victim), which carries a penalty of 8 to 20 years in prison; Osorio for sexual abuse with carnal access, a crime that ranges from 6 to 15 and, on the other hand, Sosa was accused of secondary participation, which has a minimum of two years and eight months and a maximum of 10, which allows him not to be arrested .

The hotel where the victim reported that she was abused

Although the prosecutor had requested preventive detention for all, the judge determined this type of arrest only for three of them. To make it happen, the players must first present a bond of 50 million pesos, which can be an asset, such as an apartment, or cash.

The four of them want to leave as soon as possible from the cell they share in the Investigation Directorate of the Tucumán Police and that is why the idea is to put in the money now, because until they get the papers for a property in the Federal Capital, which is where they have roots, no less than 10 days would pass.

In fact, the idea is to transfer the money no later than tomorrow and be in an apartment in Tucumán by the weekend, in the case of the three under house arrest and Sosa, the only one who can follow the process in freedom, back in Buenos Aires.

In the search for the apartment in the northern province, a possibility arose: since there is no impediment for them to be together, Cufré and Osorio could rent the same property. Both already share the same lawyer. In the case of Florentín, his lawyer is looking for a place where he can also house his family. Although the three are under arrest, there is no limit to the number of family members who can accompany them in the new situation.

The early hours of this afternoon also brought the news that the lawyers of the three arrested players had challenged the decision, which is a mechanism similar to what is known as an appeal. The Tucumán Justice was evaluating the date for that hearing, where a judge will listen to the parties again and could ratify what was decided by the first instance magistrate or review everything and release them. That crucial day, according to investigation sources, will be set within the next 10 days.

Regarding the possibility that there is a fifth player involved, Justice completely ruled it out to Infobae. The version had emerged from security cameras, which show that at the moment the complainant arrived at room 407, another footballer was leaving there. But there was no type of contact, so the accusation and investigation is limited only to the four players mentioned.

The hypothesis of a fight between Sosa and Florentín also circulated, something that was ruled out by those around both footballers, as well as by the Police. “If that had been the case, they could not have returned to the same cell after the judicial procedure,” they told this medium from the Tucumán force.

The question that many ask is why they were arrested for only 90 days, when preventive detention is generally issued and remains firm until the trial, or, as in the famous case of Sebastián Villa, the accused arrives free until the day in which He sits on the bench. The first thing to understand is that the Procedural Code of Tucumán is different from the one that governs the City or Province of Buenos Aires. In this case, the prosecutor has 90 days to gather evidence and be able to accuse. If she does not arrive on time, she has the chance to request another 90 days of house arrest for the soccer players, because the maximum that the code grants her is six months.

Why was it granted even in the face of opposition from the defenses? Because the judge understood that the prosecutor’s request that, if she let them free, they could interfere in the investigation was pertinent, since the representative of the public ministry stated that she was going to summon the rest of the delegation that was in that night as witnesses. Tucumán. And she does not want to expose herself to the possibility of them talking to her former colleagues so that everyone gives the same version.

Sosa during the hearing

There is a contradictory point in this, because Sosa could do that, who in principle would already be back in Buenos Aires this weekend. Of course, if they find out, his situation would radically worsen.

Sosa, in addition, must appear every 15 days at the police station closest to his home, to certify that he is still in the country. The other three footballers must wear electronic bracelets to monitor that they do not move from their accommodation and until these control devices arrive, they will have a rotating police guard in front of the home they rent.

This is clearly much better than what awaited them if they went with preventive measures to the Villa Urquiza Penitentiary Complex, a prison with a reputation for being heavy, of which, according to the latest official records as of 1/1/2023, 30 percent of those housed They are for homicide.

And although they would have been assigned to Unit 2, which is for those who have not yet been convicted, the population is also to be feared there: there are alleged murderers, thieves and rapists, in that order of number of inmates. And that would be their place where they will see their lives pass if the prosecution manages to prove the facts for which they are accused and they end up convicted of the aberrant crime of sexual abuse.

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