Buenos Aires, November 26 (NA) — The Court of Appeals in Criminal and Correctional Matters No. 4 will hold a hearing this Wednesday to consider the appeal filed by the family of Diego Fernández Lima, whose remains were found in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Coghlan, following the dismissal of charges against Cristian Graf.
Martín Díaz, one of the accused's lawyers, spoke with the Noticias Argentina agency and stated that the hearing is scheduled for 11 a.m. at Viamonte 1147, while confirming: "Graf will not attend."
"We are going with the best expectations, we are finalizing the last details of the presentation, which will last five minutes. I believe this happened due to the scarce legislation that existed in 1984 and because the state had no intention then or now of carrying out a serious investigation," he added.
Fernández Lima was last seen alive on July 26, 1984, in the City of Buenos Aires, the day he returned from school, had lunch with his mother, and asked for money to take the bus.
After 41 years, his bones and other belongings were found in the backyard of a chalet rented by the late singer Gustavo Cerati (who died on September 4, 2014) between 2001 and 2003.
On the other hand, the lawyer representing the accused on charges of concealment and suppression of evidence specified that the other party was given double the time.
Judge Alberto Litvack had dismissed the case against Graf for "non-existence of a crime," based on subsection 3 of Article 336 of the Criminal Code: "The investigated act does not fit into a legal figure."
In this context, Javier Fernández Lima (the victim's brother and a private complainant) and prosecutor Martín López Perrando appealed the ruling.
According to Díaz's testimony, Graf is "calm" because "he knows that the truth is on our side": "Above all, he is incapable of killing a fly, and we, his lawyers, have never doubted his innocence either."
"Here there was a story poorly told by the prosecutor that portrays Graf and his entire family as villains," the legal representative emphasized.
The defender reiterated that "no type of link" emerges from the investigation, such as "fights, friendships, or business."
"This is an atypical case, but the strangest thing is that the state never investigated the homicide."
