A former cellmate of the drug trafficker Leandro Noreroby name Marcelo Lasso Saavedrawho has described himself as his “trusted man,” testified during his early testimony at the hearing for the Metastasis Casethat he witnessed, on two occasions, conversations by video call between Norero and the former president of the Republic Rafael Correa.
Marcelo Lasso Saavedra He was a cellmate of the drug trafficker Leandro Norero (‘The boss’) in the prison Cotopaxi.
Lasso said that he was an active part of the dialogues for the pacification of the prisons carried out by a commission created by former president Guillermo Lasso. His connection was Commissioner Claudia Garzón, also prosecuted in this case.
According to Lasso, Norero communicated through the Threema application with the leaders of the criminal gangs alias Beaniealias Willyalias Cornalias Junior; with the former Correísta legislator Ronny Aleaga, who had been Latin King and was the contact with the current leaders; with Daniel Salcedo and Xavier Jordanalso prosecuted in the case.
Lasso Saavedra said having seen the face and heard the voice of Rafael Correa during video calls. The former president’s username was “RC5.”
Glas’s freedom
In the conversations, Correa and Norero talked about the freedom of the former vice president of the Republic Jorge Glas. “They talked more than anything about the freedom of Mr. Jorge Glas,” said Lasso. “Leandro and Daniel Salcedo were investing in the freedom of Mr. Jorge Glas for political purposes, because they knew that he could eventually gain strength, that he would once again have a political position and they knew that he would serve them.”
Attorney General Diana Salazar asked him how he knew it was Correa. Lasso replied that she had seen him through video calls because he was always in Norero’s cell.
“He referred to Correa as Mashi,” said.
The former president, who is currently a fugitive from Justice in Europe, reacted to testimony on the social network Xensuring that Lasso Saavedra is committing perjury and asked if “he can be prosecuted.”
Lasso also said that the former director of the National Service for Comprehensive Attention to Adults Deprived of Liberty and Adolescent Offenders (SNAI), Police General Pablo Ramírezat that time on active duty and who is also prosecuted in the case, received US$200,000 from Norero so that searches would not be carried out on him in prison. The request would have been made by Commissioner Claudia Garzón.
On a subsequent visit by General Pablo Ramírez to Latacunga, he met privately with Norero, and thanked him for the money, according to Lasso’s testimony.
(I)
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