"A Salvadoran police officer has confessed to participating in at least 97 murders between 2015 and 2020 as a member of an extermination group dedicated to executing suspected gang members, according to the Salvadoran newspaper El Faro. Among the victims were minors, businesspeople, and a priest. The officer, now a witness for the prosecution, testified that a mayor close to President Nayib Bukele paid him for 36 of those killings."
"According to the publication, the officer was arrested in August 2020, accused along with three other police officers of the disappearance and murder of two young people in 2017. After his arrest, the officer agreed to cooperate with the prosecution and became a protected witness under the code name Horus and confessed to taking part in 75 cases that resulted in 97 deaths over five years."
"However, the ruling did not include the mayor, despite the fact that he was mentioned 141 times by the main witness. For years, the case and Horus's declaration were kept secret by court order, but a leak known as Guacamaya Leaks which exposed millions of internal emails from the Salvadoran police led to the discovery of the confession. The politician named by the officer is Salvador Menendez, who has been mayor of La Paz Oeste since 2012"
A Salvadoran police officer confessed to participating in 97 murders from 2015 to 2020 as part of an extermination group targeting suspected gang members. Victims included minors, businesspeople, and a priest. The officer was arrested in August 2020 in a case concerning the disappearance and murder of two young people and agreed to cooperate, becoming a protected witness under the code name Horus. Horus admitted involvement in 75 cases resulting in 97 deaths and his testimony helped convict fellow officers in 2020. The officer testified that Mayor Salvador Menendez paid him for 36 killings. The confession surfaced publicly after the Guacamaya Leaks.
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