29th Jan 2023 @ 11:25 am

The report into the delays in the Romina Celeste case has concluded that there were no faults in the four-year investigation, causing the lawyer for the victim’s family to allege a whitewash.

Two weeks ago, the expiry of the four-year period during which a suspect can be held in prison resulted in the provisional release of suspected murderer Raul Díaz. The angry outcry that followed prompted the Las Palmas High Court to commission a report into why the case had been delayed.

Emilio Moya, President of the Las Palmas Court, concluded that the length of the investigation resulted from complicated forensic matters, made more difficult by the fact that no body was located. While the judge could find no faults in procedure, in some cases forensic work was so complicated that “excessive delay” resulted, which “should be avoided in future”. 

Emilia Zaballos, the lawyer representing Romina’s family, angrily accused Moya, of “washing his hands” of the affair, saying that the report “protected all the judges under him, but does nothing about bringing justice to the families of victims of male violence.”

For regular updates, pictures and videos of Lanzarote be sure to like and follow our Facebook page “Gazette Life Lanzarote”.