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Argentine Court Acquits All 17 in ‘El Villazo’ Case After Two-Year Trial

A dissent calling some acts crimes against humanity opens a path to appeal after judges release their written reasons on February 6.

Overview

  • Federal judges in Rosario cleared 17 defendants over the 1975–76 repression in Villa Constitución, including two former Acindar executives for whom prosecutors sought life sentences.
  • Tribunal president Germán Sutter Schneider dissented, classifying a set of detentions and killings as crimes against humanity and proposing prison terms of six and eight years for specific defendants.
  • Prosecutors and victims’ lawyers said they will appeal to the Federal Court of Cassation, with strategies to hinge on the written rationale scheduled for publication on February 6, 2026.
  • The majority rejected declaring state-of-siege decrees unconstitutional and declined to recognize Acindar’s on-site dormitory as a clandestine detention center.
  • The case examined the occupation of Villa Constitución beginning March 20, 1975, and allegations of kidnappings, torture and killings targeting metalworkers and UOM ‘lista Marrón’ militants.