Military personnel who viewed a video of a perpetrated by a fellow servicemember, who has already been convicted, have been granted amnesty under a law approved due to
The news, reported on Thursday and confirmed by army sources, indicates that these military personnel were involved in a “disciplinary infraction.” This category applies to situations in which someone in the army becomes aware of a crime but fails to report it.
Army officials disclosed that they only became aware of the involvement of military members in the WhatsApp group, where the images were shared, last month.
Emphasizing the army’s stance that it “does not condone any type of infraction or crime,” the source explained that the infraction by the servicemembers occurred on April 17, 2022, but is now “amnestied by Law No. 38-A/2023, of August 2.”
Under this law, which can be reviewed here, sanctions for offenses committed before 00:00 hours on June 19, 2023, by individuals aged between 16 and 30 at the time of the offense, are covered, as defined in articles 3 and 4.
The army explained that “an inquiry could have been initiated,” but the papal amnesty precluded this action. Earlier this week, it was reported that one of the individuals who viewed the video was a senior official at the time and is now serving with the Republican National Guard.
The servicemember who was sentenced to seven years in prison for sexual assault and invasion of privacy was employed under a contractual agreement with the army at the time of the incident.
