Judge orders Montesinos, 18 officers to stand trial 

June 13, 2002

LIMA, Peru - A Peruvian judge has ordered ex-spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos and 18 military officers to stand trial for allegedly executing three rebels during a 1997 hostage rescue, an aide to the judge said Thursday.

Judge Jorge Barreto opened an investigatory phase of the trial against Montesinos, former armed forces chief Gen. Nicolas Hermoza Rios and 17 current and former officers for homicide, according to the aide who spoke on condition of anonymity.

In papers filed May 24, prosecutors alleged that three rebels of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement were killed after they surrendered during a commando raid that ended a four-month hostage standoff at the Japanese ambassador's residence.

The spectacular rescue operation grabbed the world's attention and made national heroes out of the 140 military commandos who participated in it. All 72 hostages were freed. One later died from gunshot wounds. Two commandos were killed in the raid.

The military maintained that all 14 guerrillas were killed in initial bomb blasts and the ensuing fire fight.

But witnesses saw three rebels alive and in military custody during the raid, prosecutors said.

The murder charges have sparked a public uproar in Peru, with some government officials and former hostages objecting to making some of the commandos face trial for carrying out their duty.

Montesinos was former President Alberto Fujimori's security chief and right-hand man for a decade. He is now jailed and awaits trial on dozens of charges, including directing a death squad.

Human rights activists believe the trial could lead to human rights charges against Fujimori, who is living in exile in his parents' native Japan.

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