Intermediate room for the trial against Jorge Martínez: the witnesses have already testified and the sentence is awaited

The oral trial against Jorge Martinezformer coach of the Boca women’s team who He was reported by Florencia Marco (the campus press chief) for sexual abuse. On this occasion, the judge Sergio Paduczak of the Oral Court 22 The defendant could be sentenced to a prison term of between six months and four years.. The public prosecutor asked for three years in prison (which gives him the right to release), while the defense asked for acquittal.

After the intervention of the accused, the magistrate agreed to grant a fourth interlude at the end of which – between next Wednesday and next Monday – The charges will be read and it is estimated that the sentence for Martínez will be known. On Friday, among the 16 witnesses who testified, three members of the Boca Football Council did so. They are Mauricio Serna, Marcelo Delgado and Jorge Bermúdez. Serna did it in person, while the remaining two did it via video call.

Regarding his testimonies, Marco stated after the hearing that he suspected “false testimonies, but I trust that Justice will intervene in relation to this matter. Bermúdez and Delgado said they knew nothing about the incident and denied having spoken about it. on the fact, which is true and which I can easily verify,” he underlined.

Upon leaving the venue, Martínez (who upon arrival had shown himself certain of his innocence), contacted the press again and said that “None of the witnesses confirmed that there was physical contact as Miss Marco claims. “I am innocent, I was at the disposal of Justice from the first moment and now we just have to wait for the sentence.”

What was said earlier in the day

The former Gladiators coach, before entering the court around 8.45am, smiled and declared himself innocent and promised to show the evidence after the justice’s sentence: “I am happy because the day has come to prove my innocence. This is the peace of mind I have.”Immediately afterwards, Martínez apologized for his short words. “When the hearing is over we can talk about anything you want. He suffered a lot. “I am very sure of my innocence,” she said before entering judgment.

In turn, the complainant came to speak to the press accompanied by her lawyer, who explained the legal aspects. “Half of the witness statements have already been collected“, he assured. Along the same lines, the lawyer also lashed out at the club for its actions in this delicate situation. “You activated the protocol on February 1st when the official complaint was presented to the institute and the guidelines were not respected. The article says that urgent measures must be taken and she was invited to take a holiday and then they given permission via email to the victim and not the attacker”He explained.

Mark’s words

On the other hand, the complainant spoke about her current work situation and her relationship with the club, since she continues to be part of Boca’s press office, but still has a work license. “I am calm that this person no longer shares with women and minors. Boca has been my home for 11 years, but I’m hurt because I thought they would take care of me“, he argued. And he assured: “I’m not the only one who has experienced this, but everyone must have the time necessary to achieve all this. Unfortunately, the media had to make itself known for this person to be removed from office.knowing what was happening.”

Previous statements and the judicial process

Florence Marco, the victim, filed a complaint against the technical director in March 2023. However, in the week before the start of the oral hearing, he broke his silence to express his feelings. “I have been waiting for this moment since I filed the complaint.” she said. “I’m anxious but on the other hand nervous because All the sensations that I suffered throughout 2022 return. I will meet the attacker again, even if I have the possibility to choose that the attacker is not present in court when I give my statements”, he clarified in an interview with La Nación.

Along the same lines she went deeper: “It’s not so easy to speak up and say that I was abused. Because the truth is that The first thing you feel is immense shame like when I had to go out and talk to the media so they could remove that person from office.”

“No one wondered if he came and instead of talking to you, looking into your eyes, he looked at your breasts. because “he is like that”. There was no doubt if he came and instead of hugging you like a normal person he came to hug you and touched your private parts, because “it’s already part of him”. The abuse began to become normalized within the team,” she said. Soon after, she explained it She was not the only one to suffer this abuse from Martínez.

In this sense Florencia also told it when she communicated it to her peers. “The first thing I do, in March 2022, is talk to my colleagues and my bosses. They advised me to lodge a complaint with Human Resources and the Department for Inclusion and Equality, led by Adriana Bravo,” she said. remembered her.

In turn, he explained it The relationship with some players has changed and he also ensured that some have moved away, not for lack of affection or empathy, but for fear of retaliation. “Nobody stopped them. The psychologist told them that this topic could not be talked about in their space.“he noted.

The reaction of the leaders

“Talk to Jorge Bermúdez, with Raúl Cascini and Marcelo Delgado and I told them everything. They told me they were already talking about it with Riquelme and with Román’s brother, Everyone was informed. They told me they would have to take action, but they never did. They knew that the sexual abuse was real and that it wasn’t just about me.“, he stated. In fact, according to his own account, He filed the formal complaint on March 7, 2023, after speaking informally with the people of Boca for a year.

“I would have liked you to call me on the phone because I shared several conversations with him, I also shared friends,” he said about it the reaction he would have liked Juan Román Riquelme to have, then vice president. And he continued: “I would ask him what information he had about this situation. Because I understand that he knew that I was being abused. This makes him complicit.”

“If there is a Gender Department, why isn’t it involved? If they cannot fill the role they need to fill, they must step aside., putting many people in danger. In addition to being accomplices, they are also co-producers, they help to continue producing them,” she noted.

On the other hand, the victim also said that some of the same Boca players came to thank her for filing a complaint against Jorge Martínez for sexual abuse. “Now we are calmer“They told her. Furthermore, she explained that no one at the club called her, even though they wrote to her separately.”Today they are a bad word for the club. Nobody can talk about me. But everyone writes to me separately: my teammates, the players. But we don’t talk about it in the institution,” she concluded.