The night of the murder, Gilles heard a noise coming from an annex to the hotel. It was then that he found Flora’s body bathed in blood, “arms in the air as if she had been pulled to the ground”says Julie. “He panicked wondering if he was going to get killed too. The annex is located next to the lodge in which his employee was staying but the latter was sleeping at his girlfriend’s house the night of the murder. Gilles therefore first tried to contact him by telephone and after three unsuccessful attempts, he called the police to inform them of the macabre discovery.”
The troubled role of Gilles’ employee
Once there, the police and the lab carried out investigative duties which revealed that the victim had been killed by a gunshot to the head. “The hotel was searched from top to bottom. They got their hands on the revolver that my brother had purchased without a license two years earlier following a fight between his employee and an individual who was a member of a drug cartel. This man was arrested and imprisoned. The employee had gotten himself into a complicated matter and for protection, my brother bought this gun in case something happened but he never used it in the end.” Julie explains.
No shell casings or bullet holes were found in the annex where the victim’s body lay. “Flora was found without her pair of shoes and with a bracelet that had slipped from her wrist to her hand, supporting the theory of a displaced body.she adds.
Another disturbing fact: the photo of the dead victim was posted on a Tortuguero social media messenger. An identical modus operandi was observed during the murder of another woman which occurred six months earlier in the same village. “His body was found in a school classroom. His photo also circulated on social networks. The drug cartel is suspected because this lady had tried to sell drugs at another price and we would be talking about a settling of scores. she adds.
Impartial justice?
The attitude of the prosecutor in charge of the case is singled out by Gilles’ sister who does not hesitate to question her impartiality. “She took an incredible amount of time to respond to the lawyer, investigative duties were not carried out for at least six months, including the expertise of the weapon which would have proven that it had never been used but that -this has never been carried out. There is therefore no proof that it was not used.”she adds. “Furthermore, there are surveillance cameras which have never been analyzed even though they certainly contain key elements to the investigation.”
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“Moreover, two tourists were sleeping in a cabin ten meters from the annex. During their interview, they assured investigators that they had heard nothing”adds Julie. “But shortly after, a neighbor let my brother know that he had seen things but was being kept quiet for fear of retaliation from the drug cartel. The lawyer repeatedly requested that this individual be interviewed but the prosecutor took no action in this direction. In addition, the police report indicates that the famous bracelet, although evidence, was given to a person who presented himself as a close member of the family, which is false. No one close to Flora has recovered this bracelet.”continues Julie, who suspects that her brother was probably framed by a drug cartel.
Finally, the behavior of Gilles’ employee is, to say the least, questioning. The individual changed his version several times during the hearings. His troubled past (convicted for moral offenses) and his “rogue” side sow confusion about his precise role played in this affair.
Many questions remain unanswered in this dark affair. What was the role of Gilles’ employee with a tortuous career? What about his links with the drug world? Did the addictions from which the victim suffered play a role in his tragic fate? Who is the person who recovered the bracelet worn by the victim? Why did the prosecutor not want to examine Gilles’ weapon, which would have allowed him to be exonerated once and for all? So many questions that need to be clarified.
For its part, the Foreign Affairs service in Belgium says it has been informed of the situation. “We are aware and we are monitoring this situation closely, in collaboration with our embassy in Panama. As this is an individual case, we do not provide additional personal information”concludes Pierre Steverlynck, spokesperson for the FPS Foreign Affairs.
