The highest court rejected the mayor of La Matanza's latest attempt to halt the case against him. The judiciary dismissed all his arguments and upheld his indictment
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Impunity is beginning to crack in the heart of the Buenos Aires metropolitan area. The Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, with the signatures of Justices Horacio Rosatti, Carlos Rosenkrantz, and Ricardo Lorenzetti, rejected the appeal filed by the defense of La Matanza's mayor, Fernando Espinoza, and upheld his indictment for simple sexual abuse and disobedience of a court order.
With this ruling, the Kirchnerist leader—a historic ally of hardline Peronism and current head of the country's most populous district—is on track to face a public trial that could mark a turning point in his political career.
The Supreme Court's decision dismisses the defense's arguments, which had unsuccessfully tried to argue that the indictment did not constitute a "final judgment." With this resolution, the case moves forward to the oral proceedings, where the evidence and testimonies that seriously implicate the mayor will be examined.
Axel Kicillof y Fernando Espinoza.
The victim, Melody Jacqueline Rakauskas, served as Espinoza's private secretary and reported him in June 2021 to the Domestic Violence Office of the Supreme Court itself. According to her testimony, the mayor hired her informally with the promise of paying her 150,000 pesos (330 pounds) per month, but the employment relationship turned into a situation of abuse.
According to the complaint, on May 10, 2021, Espinoza visited her apartment under the pretext of discussing work matters. During dinner, the mayor allegedly began making advances until he moved on to physical harassment. "Don't be afraid, come on. My friends' wives have mustaches," he allegedly said before attempting to force himself on her.
The woman recounted that the leader unbuttoned his jersey, took off his pants, and led her to the bed, where he groped her and tried to force her while insisting: "Relax, I've always wanted you, everything will be fine." Rakauskas stated that she managed to resist, after which Espinoza left, saying: "Alright, that's it, I'm leaving. You're an idiot, you don't know what you're missing."
Melody Jacqueline Rakauskas.
Investigating judge Fernando Caunedo indicted Espinoza without pretrial detention, but imposed a restraining order against the complainant and also charged him with judicial disobedience, after confirming that he attempted to contact her through a municipal official to persuade her to withdraw the complaint.
The Criminal Chamber, Division VII, confirmed the indictment in July 2023 and described the victim's testimony as "coherent, persistent, and credible." In May of this year, the same court upheld the referral to public trial and rejected a new request for annulment from the defense.
Judges Juan Cicciaro and Rodolfo Pociello Argerich maintained that there remained "the required probability to consider the accusation against the named party proven" and that dismissal was not appropriate at this stage.
The defense, represented by the law firm of former federal judge León Arslanian, had alleged the existence of an audio on the victim's cell phone that would mention an attempted agreement between the parties. However, the judges concluded that this element should be analyzed in the public trial, not during the investigation.
Despite his attempts to portray himself as a victim by alleging a supposed "political persecution", the historic leader of Buenos Aires Kirchnerism was unable to prevent the judiciary from moving forward. The Supreme Court nullified his latest delaying tactic and confirmed that Espinoza will have to answer before a public court.
