Colombian doctor Edwin Arrieta died in Thailand at the hands of Spanish chef Daniel Sancho. This is what he himself confessed to the local authorities. The crime occurred the first week of August and since then, having overcome the barrier of the midday news, it continues to be a regular topic of gatherings on sets and press clippings. That the young accused is the son of actor Rodolfo Sancho explains the phenomenon. Just a couple of days ago, Edwin Arrieta’s sister decided to dispense with the Bogotá lawyer Miguel González Sánchez and put her interests in the hands of Adriana Behaine, a very young lawyer with no experience in cases of such magnitude but a native of the same Colombian town that the victim and linked to his family.
Until that disconcerting decision for such a complicated case, in Spain the renowned Sevillian criminal lawyer Luis Romero, a doctor in Law, founder of the Spanish Association of Criminal Lawyers and with more than 30 years of experience behind him, served as spokesman for the Arrietas. Now, freed from family responsibility, he speaks to La Vanguardia about the prospects for such a high-profile event and the probable future of Daniel Sancho.
How do you come into contact with Mr. Arrieta’s family?
The media called me after the news broke between August 5 and 6, as an expert lawyer in international criminal law. The following week they invited me again and just the day before, on August 15, the lawyer Miguel González Sánchez, from Bogotá, who I have as a contact on LinkedIn, contacted me. And I have been to Colombia a few times for work reasons. I offered him my help if he needed anything from Spain and he immediately responded that that was precisely why he contacted me, because he needed a prestigious criminal law firm to be his spokesperson here, in addition to advising them. So I gave a statement on behalf of the family the next day on television.
You have been able to see first-hand all the material collected by the Thai Police throughout the month of August. Do you have any idea why Daniel Sancho could commit such a heinous and clumsy crime?
You see, I always try to get into what sociology is: of crime, of the criminal, of crime, etc. At first, Sancho said that he felt in a cage, after he had received threats, that he and his family were in danger, the prestige of his father… Although an explanation could be sought in all of this, never a justification . Neither in Spain nor in Thailand nor in any country, logically. But the thing is that nothing could be proven of everything he has said and he has lied from the first moment. I compare it in this with the case of Miguel Carcaño, in which the court subtracted all credibility because he came to give seven versions.
For the layman, why is there no doubt that it was murder and not manslaughter?
The premeditation is obvious: a day before, Sancho went to buy the instruments that he would use in dismembering the victim: knife, saw, gloves, plastic bags, cleaning products… When he picks it up and gets on the motorcycle with it, I had it all planned. He had planned all the preparatory acts and he himself confessed how he did it before the Police and the intervention of third parties is ruled out since a recording shows how two people arrive at the house and only one leaves. There is also treachery, which means lowering any possible defense of the victim, and even cruelty, infringing an unnecessary evil to kill the doctor.
What defense does Sancho have?
Very little. I see no explanation for such a horrendous crime, no matter how many threats he would have suffered, if that were true, since there are obvious solutions such as leaving the island, notifying the authorities, etc. But the thing is that, in addition, Dr. Arrieta’s motive also throws the instruments of crime into the sea. If there is content there that could benefit you, save it. Why do you delete the content of his own cell phone? Anyway. I also don’t see any fit for the defense of insurmountable fear. I have handled more than 50 cases of murder or manslaughter and there, as here, for this defense to be given, the fear about one’s integrity must be certain and imminent, but it was all bought the day before. As for his psychic abilities, only an in-depth report could help but it would be advisable for it to exist prior to the events and, as far as we know, it does not exist. Drug and alcohol tests have also produced no results. I think, in short, that Sancho calculated that simulating a disappearance would be easier for him.
Marcos García Montes, his lawyer, is hopeful.
We know each other and I respect him a lot. In his place, I would also look for any corner to hold on to, but that they trust that he will be there for four years and that upon his return, the Supreme Court can declare the reconstruction null and void because his lawyer was not there… Things go there as they go. and we know what its political system is like: its monarchy, the power of the military, the lack of democratic guarantees, etc. Even if we raise flags of human rights or cite the UN, they will not change their way of dealing with a confessed murderer. The extradition agreement between Spain and Thailand does not expressly state that they must spend eight years in prison to be able to request it, but that is what happens in practice. If necessary, if he evades the death penalty thanks to the confession and his status as a foreigner, he will most likely be sentenced to life imprisonment. But in Spain we don’t have that sentence and in Thailand they know it, obviously, and no matter how high a sentence for murder is, it would never be equivalent. Here his defense has a serious problem in achieving extradition. Furthermore, they must be very upset with Spain.
What is it referring to?
To the criticisms that our country has leveled at its system as a result of this case, even though many of them are founded. But in social gatherings, in the press and on sets, they have made fun of the Police and, logically, they have not liked it: commentators have disparagingly analyzed the reconstruction, it has been insinuated that it could have been coerced when it is observed that the tone with the agents is relaxed, He has said that they promised him that if he confessed they would commute his death sentence and perhaps that is why he got carried away… In my experience, most criminals harbor a weight inside and confession is not rare at all. I am convinced that the criticism that Spanish commentators have expressed about Thailand will not help Daniel Sancho
What do you think could have bothered them the most?
Look at the camera system that exists on that island: everything is perfectly captured by a computer system and they have Sancho recorded even on the beach, and even at night. In addition, there are the statements of numerous witnesses (who rented the kayak, the person from the store, the one who rented the house). In short, we can doubt the system, the way of reconstructing the facts, but not that everything is documented. That there may be a lack of procedural guarantees, reasons for nullity according to our regulations, etc. but they are not going to take any of that into account.
