The main suspect in the murder of Helena Jubany, summoned to court
The judge questions Santi Laiglesia after confirming that his DNA was found on the victim's clothing.
SabadellThe 2001 murder of Helena Jubany is being investigated against the clock before the statute of limitations expires. This Friday, Santi Laiglesia, whom the victim's family considers the prime suspect, is scheduled to appear in court. The judge summoned him after confirming that DNA evidence found on the clothing Jubany was wearing when she died matches Laiglesia's DNA. The Jubany family hopes that Laiglesia's testimony will bring the investigation to a close and pave the way for a trial more than two decades later. In addition to Laiglesia, Xavi Jiménez remains under investigation. Both were Jubany's companions in the Sabadell Hiking Club (UES), and in Jiménez's case, no genetic matches were found. It has been confirmed that he wrote parts of the anonymous messages Jubany received before she was killed, one of them accompanied by orange juice containing benzodiazepines, the same substance detected in the victim's blood after her body was found in an interior courtyard. Jiménez already appeared before the Sabadell Court of Instruction Number 2 in 2022 and denied any involvement in the crime.
Since Helena Jubany's death on December 2, 2001, enough time has passed for the statute of limitations to have expired for those who have never been charged. The prosecution, representing the family and lawyer Benet Salellas, managed to reopen the case in 2020. In the initial investigation, two members of the Sabadell Hiking Club, Montse Careta and Ana Echaguibel, were under scrutiny. Careta, who committed suicide while in pretrial detention for the case, lived in the building where Jubany's body was found and was Laiglesia's partner, who spent many nights at his apartment. DNA tests conducted in this new phase of the investigation have ruled out that the traces of female DNA found on Jubany's body and clothing belong to either Careta or Echaguibel. After years of investigation, the family sees the end in sight and is focusing its efforts on bringing Laiglesia and Jiménez to trial.