An Argentinian judge was caught on video kissing a convicted cop-killer after she tried to get him a reduced sentence, prompting an investigation into her "inappropriate behavior."
The leaked clip, captured by a surveillance camera, shows Judge Mariel Suarez on Dec. 29 at a penitentiary in Trelew, where she is seen kissing Cristian Bustos, who received a life sentence for murdering police officer Leandro Roberts in 2008, according to the Buenos Aires Times.
Suárez, who was one of three judges in the case, dissented over his sentence and sought a lesser penalty, even though he admitted at trial that he fatally shot the cop, according to the news outlet.
An officer on duty during the amorous meeting also reported that he spotted the pair stealing a kiss inside a room at the lockup. Watch the video below:
Suarez Denies Kissing Bustos, Claims She was Interviewing Him for a Book
Suarez claims thereno hanky-panky between her and Bustos and she was only interviewing him for a book. The judge insistedthat she has "no sentimental relationship" with the prisoner and that she went to see him because she is writing a book on his case.
"It was the first time I had seen him and we had talked about it [the sentencing]. I bumped into him, told him I was going to arrange an interview with him and told him I was going to write a book," Suárez told the a local news outlet.
"He told me personal things and showed me his tattoos," she said. "I want to do a piece of investigative journalism. He was very happy with the project because after many years he could tell what happened."
Suarez Under Investigation
Despite her claims, authorities in the Chubut Province have initiated disciplinary proceedings against Suarez.
"As a result of a formal communication addressed to the ministers in court, a meeting requested by a criminal judge of the district of Comodoro Rivadavia and an inmate housed in said penitentiary center, considered highly dangerous and recently condemned in the framework of an oral and public trial held in the city of Esquel, came to light," the Superior Court of Justice said in a statement.
"It appears that the judge has engaged in inappropriate conduct for a magistrate. The proceedings are aimed at elucidating the circumstances of the meeting between a judge and a convicted person, the tenor of the meeting, its duration and its characteristics, which could imply violations of the Public Ethics Law and/or the General Internal Regulations of the Judiciary," it added.
