Photo: Juan López.
This hour we are following a media conference being held by the Tocoa Municipal Committee for the Defence of Common and Public Goods (Comité Municipal en Defensa de los Bienes Comunes y Públicos).
That media conference can be seen here.
The Public Ministry of Honduras has posted: “The Public Prosecutor’s Office, through the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Crimes Against Life (FEDCV) in coordination with members of the Police Directorate of Investigations (DPI), executed the arrest of three alleged perpetrators of the murder of human rights and environmental defender, Juan Antonio López.”
Their statement adds: “They are the former mayor of Tocoa, Adán Fúnez Martínez, Juan Ángel Ramos Gallegos and Héctor Eduardo Méndez; whom the Public Prosecutor’s Office also accuses of the crime of association to commit a crime to the detriment of other fundamental rights.”
Infobae also reports: “The Public Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that Adán Fúnez is being investigated as the alleged mastermind of the murder of environmentalist Juan López, within a line of investigation that is still open and has already included the arrest of other alleged suspects.”
That article adds: “The spokesman for the Public Prosecutor’s Office, Yuri Mora … said that investigations cover not only the material authors of the crime, but also possible masterminds, with the aim of fully clarifying the structure behind the murder.”
Juan López was the coordinator of the Tocoa Municipal Committee for the Defence of Common and Public Goods. He was killed on September 14, 2024, inside his vehicle after leaving a church in the city of Tocoa.
With PBI-Honduras, PBI-Canada coordinator Brent Patterson visited Tocoa and Guapinol on October 29-30, 2024.
Peace Brigades International has accompanied Municipal Committee for the Defence of Common and Public Goods of Tocoa (CMDBCPT) processes and the defenders of the Guapinol River since January 2019.
This is a developing story that we are following.
