Peru court hands lengthy prison terms in killing of Indigenous Amazon defender
The court said the killing was tied to illegal logging, and ordered prison terms of 15 to 35 years plus compensation for the victim’s heirs.
- On Monday, a Peruvian court convicted four men of murder-for-hire in the 2023 killing of Quinto Inuma Alvarado, sentencing them to between 15 and 35 years in prison.
- Prosecutors argued that timber operator Segundo Juan Villalobos Guevara ordered the killing because Inuma had spent years denouncing illegal logging and encroachment on his community's territory in the Amazon's San Martin region.
- The trial spanned nearly eight months, and the court ordered 750,000 soles in compensation for Inuma's legal heirs and 250,000 soles for Axeldina Barbarán Tapullima, who survived the attack.
- Legal experts called the ruling an "exemplary sentence" setting a precedent for environmental defender cases, while Kevin Arnol Inuma, the leader's son, said the verdict showed "impunity for killings of Indigenous defenders is not inevitable."
- Violence against Indigenous defenders persists, as Asháninka leader Américo Pascuala Tomisha was shot dead Sunday while patrolling his territory in Peru's Amazonian Ucayali region, prompting regional organizations to call for strengthened protections.
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This week, Peruvian justice condemned the murderers of Quinto Inuma Alvarado, an indigenous leader and defender of the Amazon, who was killed in 2023. A rare trial, which could set a precedent.
In Peru, the courts handed down sentences of up to 35 years in prison on Monday against four persons convicted of the murder of Quinto Inuma, indigenous leader and defender of the Amazonia killed in November 2023. A sentence hailed as a historical one by the victims' lawyers, in a country where impunity remains the norm for this type of crime.
Associated Press News
Peru court hands lengthy prison terms in killing of Indigenous Amazon defender
A Peruvian court has convicted four men of murder-for-hire and sentenced them to between 15 and 35 years in prison for the 2023 killing of an Indigenous Kichwa leader and rainforest defender.
The Judiciary sentenced up to 35 years in prison four persons who were found responsible for the murder of the Apu of the Kichwa Native Community, Quinto Inuma, on 29 November 2023, when the victim was travelling on a boat, in the Yanayacu River, San Martín region.The Third National Criminal Court handed down a sentence against Genix Savoya Savoya, Limber Ríos Ruiz, Segundo Juan Villalobos Guevara and Jerly Savoya Saboya for the commission of th…
The Ashéninka leader was killed despite having protection measures for his territorial defence work.
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