Today, the transfer of Mario Sandoval to our country was confirmed, within the framework of the extradition request made to France with a view to prosecuting him for the alleged commission of crimes against humanity in the former clandestine detention centre that operated at the Naval Mechanics School (ESMA).
On 11 December 2019 the French Council of State confirmed the extradition of Mario Sandoval, granting Argentina's request, for him to be prosecuted for the kidnapping and disappearance of Hernán Abriatta.
The outcome of Mario Sandoval's extradition proceedings is the result of the joint work between the Federal Court and the Public Prosecutor's Office, and of the diplomatic demarches taken by various departments of the Foreign Ministry and the Embassy of the Argentine Republic in France since 2012, with the support of a French human rights lawyer in order to have the former police officer prosecuted in Argentina.
Thus, the positive result of international criminal cooperation between States reinforces the principle that crimes against humanity should not remain unpunished and that those accused of such serious crimes must be prosecuted.
The extradition of Mr Sandoval not only reaffirms the fact that Argentina deems the prosecution of human rights violations as a State policy but also Argentina's universal commitment to human rights.