Wheelchair-bound man who killed a thief in Bon Pastor is released from prison

BarcelonaPepe, the man in the wheelchair who killed a thief in Barcelona's Bon Pastor neighborhood, will be able to await trial in freedom. This Thursday a judge agreed to release him provisionally, as his defense requested, and this afternoon he left Brians 1 prison, where he was admitted on April 7 and spent nine days incarcerated.

Last week, the on-call judge sent Pepe to provisional prison. The decision sparked protests from his circle and even then jurists consulted by ARA doubted that preventive detention was justified given his state of health. Today another judge, who will be in charge of the investigation, had to ratify or not this measure.

This morning, Pepe was transferred from Sant Esteve de Sesrovires prison to the Barcelona Justice City to attend the hearing where it was to be decided in what situation he would spend the coming months. Both his lawyer and the Prosecutor's Office presented their arguments to the judge, and once the magistrate had already decided that Pepe would be released from prison, they took him back to Brians 1 to carry out the release procedures, which took place hours later.

The Prosecutor's Office wanted house arrest

Pepe's defense has requested his release, as they already did last week. In contrast, the Prosecutor's Office has changed its mind: while last Tuesday they requested Pepe be remanded in custody, a week later and having received a vulnerability report, they have opted to ask the court for a house arrest measure.

Specifically, the Prosecutor's Office proposed that Pepe be unable to leave home without express judicial authorization or to go to the doctor, that he wear an electronic monitoring bracelet to verify he did not leave, that his passport be confiscated, and that the Mossos d'Esquadra provide a report every two weeks on compliance with these restrictions.

Finally, Judge of Instruction 31 has dismissed the Prosecutor's Office's request and has granted Pepe provisional release. However, while the case is being investigated, he is prohibited from leaving the country and must report to the court whenever requested.