Gustavo Nievas, the lawyer representing nurse Brenda Agüero, the main suspect in the trial into the death of five newborn babies at a Córdoba hospital, has forecast his client “will be acquitted” of all charges.
Nievas, who denies his client was responsible for the deaths at the Hospital Materno Neonatal Ministro Dr. Ramón Carillo in Córdoba in 2022, said “there is no direct or indirect evidence against her,” only “suspicions and a load of fabricated evidence.”
Agüero is expected to testify on Tuesday in the jury trial taking place in Córdoba.
Before proceedings got underway, Nievas spoke on Radio Rivadavia, asserting that for now, the accusation against his client “is the interpretation of events made by the Public Prosecutor’s Office, but it is merely an accusation in potential terms, which may or may not reflect what actually happened.”
The defence lawyer argued: “The trial began on Monday with the reading of the charges and the opening statement, where all the lawyers had the opportunity to present what we believe happened. What the prosecutor believes is aligned with the view of the investigating prosecutor, as they are both part of the same structure known as the Public Prosecutor’s Office.”
In this regard, he maintained that Agüero is inherently and genuinely innocent because “there is no direct evidence” against her: “We have demonstrated that our hypothesis is that there was widespread sepsis, because the neonatal hospital, and specifically the obstetrics centre, was filthy.”
“The deceased babies did not all die from the same cause; in some cases, it was due to congenital conditions or issues stemming from the mothers themselves,” he claimed.
“Out of respect, we have refrained from mentioning this until now, but it is evident from the medical records of the mothers that one had AIDS, two had syphilis, three had renal problems, and this ultimately affected the babies,” he added.
He continued: “The official narrative of healthy mothers, normal pregnancies, and healthy babies, or surprise at the babies’ deaths, was a lie, a fabrication that will begin to unravel as testimonies are heard and evidence emerges during the trial.”
Regarding the alleged potassium injections that killed them, Nievas stated: “Scientifically, it is impossible for a 3-kilogram baby to receive even the smallest dose and survive. That is an absolute lie which will be proven false. The progression to death following potassium administration is immediate.”
The defence lawyer argued that there was “ widespread sepsis that the doctors failed to manage, and when the situation deteriorated, they started fabricating a story to absolve the government of responsibility in a public hospital.”
Slamming the prosecutors for creating the idea of a “serial killer,” he argued that his client “was chosen from among those who attended nearly all the births, because she is a woman, from the provinces, and was presumed unable to defend herself.”
He confidently forecast: “In a couple of months, Brenda will be acquitted, because there is no direct or indirect evidence against her, only suspicions and a load of fabricated evidence.”
Eleven defendants are in the dock for a trial by jury in which hundreds of witnesses will testify.
Among the other accused are healthcare professionals, former provincial government officials and top executives at the Hospital Materno Neonatal Ministro Dr. Ramón Carillo in Córdoba.
The leading figure in the case is Agüero, who is accused of infanticide. The 30-year-old is accused of injecting potassium into the newborns, causing fatal hyperkalemia.
The incidents under investigation occurred between March and June 2022, during which five newborn babies died suddenly after healthy births. Another eight children exhibited the same symptoms but managed to recover.
Autopsy results published in August 2022 concluded at least two of the dead infants had been injected “intentionally” with amounts of potassium “incompatible with life.”
Puncture marks on the babies’ backs aroused suspicion. The children were required to have three injections upon birth but had four wounds. Welts and bruises appeared near the puncture site on several bodies.
Agüero, who was responsible for vaccinating children at birth at the hospital, has been in custody since August 2022.
She faces charges of "aggravated homicide by repeated insidious procedures" for the five deceased babies, and is also charged with "attempted homicide" for the other eight affected.
Former hospital director Liliana Asís is also in custody, accused of "aggravated concealment, ideological falsehood, and omission of the duties of a public official."
Former Córdoba Province Health Minister Diego Cardozo has also been charged with covering-up the crime and breach of duty.
The hospital's former head of nursing, Alicia Beatriz Ariza, doctor Pablo Miguel Carvajal, and the former deputy director of Administrative Management at the Health Ministry, Julio Alejandro Tomás Escudero Salama face similar allegations.
– TIMES/NA
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