Former Transport Secretary Juan Pablo Schiavi denied any responsibility for the Once train crash that caused the death of 51 passengers in February. The former official presented a written statement to Federal Judge Claudio Bonadío this morning refusing to take on any culpability for the accident and blaming the engine driver for the tragedy.
Schiavi arrived at the Comodoro Py court by midmorning, where he was expected to be questioned by the federal judge. He refused to answer the magistrate’s questions claiming his constitutional right to decline to testify presenting a written statement instead.
On the written statement, the former Transport Secretary and his lawyers argue that the engine driver was responsible for the tragedy.
According to the document presented today in court that is “the only plausible assumption.”
The document also called attention to a forensic analysis carried out on Marcos Córdoba, the train’s engine operator, indicating a “possible epileptic activity.”
“He was unable to pull the breaks due to a physical impediment”, Schiavi’s lawyers argued.
On March 5, Judge Bonadío banned Schiavi and the chairman of train company Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA) Claudio Cirigliano from leaving the country as the train crash probe continued.
Yesterday, the judge issued an arrest warrant against Cirigliano and three other members of the company’s board.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald