MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

German consul in Rio released from custody in husband's death probe

The consul was released due to procedural mishandling. No charges have yet been filed

Rio de Janeiro Judge Rosa Helena Macedo Guita from the 2nd Criminal Court Friday ordered the release of German Consul Uwe Herbert Hahn from custody after he had been arrested earlier this month in connection with his Belgian husband's death in fudgy circumstances.

Hahn, 60, was under preventive detention since Aug. 7 of this month for the death of his husband, the Belgian Walter Henri Biot, 52, who was found dead in the couple's penthouse, on Rua Nascimento e Silva, in Ipanema, Rio's south zone.

Read also: German consul in Rio arrested over husband's murder

Two days after the arrest of the German consul, the same magistrate had denied a request for freedom filed by the diplomat's defense, claiming “there were no illegalities” in Hahn's arrest in flagrante delicto.

In its latest request, the consul's defense asked for the lifting of the preemptive measure, citing the absence of flagrant arrest and also because of the personal immunity of the accused. The defense claimed the time to file an indictment had been excessive.

In her decision to grant the habeas corpus in favor of the German consul, the judge wrote: “In fact, [he] has been held in preventive custody since August 7, 2022, and, according to information extracted from the website of this Court, it appears that to date the indictment has not been offered, after 9 days from the expiration of the statutory period of 10 days.”

The judge also wrote in her decision that “considering the flagrant excess of time for criminal action, I grant the injunction in order to relax the imprisonment of Uwe Herbert Hahn.”

The magistrate also urged the Public Prosecutor's Office to be aware of it and to take the necessary measures.

In a note, the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) said that “the 1st Prosecutor's Office of the 4th Jury Court of the Capital informed that it was not, to date, summoned to offer an accusation. Therefore, the deadline for the accusation has not even begun.”

(Source: Agencia Brasil)