Roger Español says that they shot him "as a reprisal" while the police defend the action: "It was perfect"

BarcelonaNine years after the police charges of October 1st, Roger Español has explained before a court how and when a rubber bullet emptied his eye. His testimony has opened the trial for the only four police officers who will be judged for the October 1st charges. A shotgunner and three commanders face up to 13 years in prison for an operation that the head of the riot police described as "absolutely perfect," while several witnesses have explained that the agents were shooting directly at people's bodies, not at the ground for the rubber balls to bounce. Español believes that the shot was "a reprisal" for having thrown a fence when an officer had struck him with a baton.

"I hope for a guilty verdict that serves for all those people who could not have recognition, justice, or reparation for October 1st and also so that a step forward is taken in the banning once and for all of these cursed rubber bullets," he said before entering the trial. Once in the courtroom, he explained that he left his house alone to go to the Ramon Llull School, his voting point, from where the police were taking away the ballot boxes. He also wanted to reach other schools in his neighborhood, and at the intersection of Sardenya and Diputació streets, he found a few dozen people sitting on the road to prevent the police from passing, and he joined them. When the police dispersed them, he received a baton blow to the thigh, and he said that, out of frustration at the moment, he kicked a fence that ended up hitting a police officer. In fact, the Prosecutor's Office wanted Español to be tried for assaulting the officer, but the case was archived due to the amnesty law, which did not protect the officers due to the severity of the injuries.

Español continued walking along Sardenya Street, where the officers who were retreating were also walking with their backs turned. He said he was walking near a group of journalists, identified by orange vests, because it seemed "safer" to him. Although he had heard shots, he did not know that the officers were using rubber bullets until one hit him in the face. "I thought what they were firing were blanks, I had the Esther Quintana case very much in mind and the resolution to ban rubber bullets in Catalonia," he said. In fact, he assured that at the first moment he did not understand what had happened.

17 rubber bullets

This stretch of Sardenya street is the only point in the city of Barcelona where rubber bullets were fired that day, 17 in total. This was specified during the trial by the then head of the National Police riot squad, José Miguel Ruiz Iguzquiza, who worked under the code name Marte during the October 1st operation. In his statement, he said that they did not open any disciplinary file on the officers because, once the images were reviewed, they assessed that it had been "an absolutely perfect intervention." However, he admitted that the same images were insufficient to identify the shooter and said that the force "did not have enough money" to investigate it.

Español was admitted to Sant Pau Hospital for nine days, and in addition to the vision in one eye, he lost sensitivity in his teeth, which meant he could no longer continue to work professionally as a saxophonist. The mutilation also caused him to lose confidence and has affected his social life, and he is still undergoing psychological treatment for the physical aftereffects. The private prosecution has requested compensation of 320,632 euros for Español from the police officers and the Spanish government.

"He fired directly"

This Wednesday, journalists who were in the area where Español collapsed also testified, as did residents who also sat down to prevent the police from passing. All of them asserted that the officers were firing their shotguns parallel to the ground, and not at the ground to make the rubber bullet bounce. One witness was a few meters away from Español and was struck by a rubber bullet in the leg; another was hit with batons while sitting on the ground blocking the street.

Throughout the hearing, an interpreter translated for the four defendants what the various witnesses testified in Catalan. This Thursday, about fifty police officers are summoned to testify. Afterward, the trial will not resume until September 30th. In the final session, the defendants will testify, coinciding with the ninth anniversary of the events.