MEXICO CITY: A Mexican army general has been sentenced to 52 years and six months in prison for ordering the torture of a suspect and the incineration of his body, authorities said Thursday.
The Federal Judicial Council said the general, whose name was not released, ordered that the suspect be tortured for several hours to get information about a soldier’s death in July 2008 in the northern state of Chihuahua.
The victim was taken to a military installation, where he was tied up and soaked in water in order to receive electric shocks, while other suspects were being interrogated.
The torture began in the early hours of July 28, 2008, and ended at 9:00 am when the victim died, “very probably” of a heart attack resulting from the electric shocks, the council said.
The general then ordered that the body be driven to a ranch, where it was “incinerated in a clandestine manner,” the council said.
The court that sentenced the general ordered the defense ministry to offer a public apology, accept responsibility and vow that such acts will not be repeated.
