Old San Juan - El Morro Fort, Photos

Cute Macaws in Old San Juan

 People stopped at the sight of these cute Macaws in Old San Juan. January 2009

Mother of Brutally Murdered Eight Year Old Will Not Cooperate with the Department of Justice, Says Her Attorney

Following the specific instructions of her main legal representative, Ana Cacho, the mother of eight year old Lorenzo González-Cacho, whose bloody murder has not been resolved after more than forty days, will not provide statements to the Department of Justice. 

Nevertheless, she had a lot to say during a 41 minute radio interview.  The interview was coordinated by attorney Antonio Sagardia in a radio station where he is a political analyst. Ana Cacho narrated what happened during the last few hours before Lorenzo was murdered. She said that the boy had been playing soccer, then was taken to a fast food restaurant by his father and brought home around 8:30 that evening. According to Ana, Lorenzo showered and started doing homework, but fell asleep on his notebook. Ana said she put all three children in bed by 9:30 p.m. 

What she doesn’t say in the radio interview, but was found out during the investigation, was that, allegedly, she received the visit of three males that night after the children were sleeping. One of them is a very young man (20 years old) the second one was a federal immigration agent identified as William, and the third one was a friend. They all left after midnight.

Fast forward: 4:00 a.m. Ana’s narration then jumps to the part where Lorenzo’s younger sister woke her mother up because the girl was wet with Lorenzo’s blood.  There is a blank space, an unclear part in her public declaration, which left the listeners even more confused.

The investigators found no evidence of forced entry in the Cacho residence, but they did find a pipe and an empty crack capsule in the house. Forensics found Ana’s ADN traces on the pipe. People are outraged: is it possible that they all were under the influence of drugs? Senior political analyst and lawyer Juan Manuel García-Passalaqua said in the local radio station WKAQ: “I am going to give you my opinion as a lawyer—to me, these people were all doped and having a party and one of them hit the boy.”

During the rest of the radio interview, Ana Cacho focused on the acts of her ex husband and father of her three children, whom she considers a chronic jealous man and a stalker who would even get on the roof of her own house to spy her.  The public perception is that the questions and the editing of the interview were accommodated to favor Ana Cacho, who  in the eyes of the public opinion is hiding the truth.

The Director of the Department of Justice, Guillermo Somoza, stated his intention of requesting the raw interview to the radio station to be used during the investigation process. However, the President of the Puerto Rico Association of Journalists replied that requesting the work of journalists during the investigation of a topic is wrong. 

Original articles (in Spanish):  http://www.elnuevodia.com/anacachonocooperaraconjusticia-688905.html

http://www.primerahora.com/diario/noticia/policia/noticias/asppro_advierte_conflicto_etico_de_justicia_al_pedir_crudo_de_la_entrevista_de_ana_cacho/381874

Internet Groups that Favor the Murder Investigation of Eight Year Old Lorenzo are Facing Cyber Bullies

After the cold blooded murder of eight-year-old Lorenzo Gonzalez-Cacho, still unsolved after 40 days, the pressure of public opinion is increasing in Puerto Rico. Literally, letters demanding a resolution to the case, and a better, faster investigation, flood radio and television stations. People are calling ratio stations and constantly fax and e-mail the Department of Justice, Department of Family, the Governor himself, the Superintendent of Police and the Attorney General, among other agencies.




Several groups and pages demanding justice for Lorenzo have been created on the Internet, especially in the social network Facebook. These groups share information on the latest developments of the case and discuss television programs and radio interviews. Through these cyber forums, many users have discussed several theories and irregularities surrounding this case.

One group named "Justice for Lorenzo González” recently was the target of cyber hackers. The hackers removed the photos of the child and instead placed satanic images and photographs showing the number 666, the antichrist and bloody massacres. These pictures, obviously, created discomfort, fear and repulsion among the forum members.

Replacing the original pictures with profane images is nothing but a strategy of psychological intimidation and threat. This is called bullying. The hackers, who use pseudonyms like “Gato Encerrado” (translated as: a fishy situation) and Basta Ya (“stop”), criticize the citizens that exercise their right to free expression, which is guaranteed by the Constitution of Puerto Rico and the United States of America. They also blocked the group administrator and several leaders from accessing the group.

The facts are: that Lorenzo’s mother was interviewed as a suspect of her own child’s murder; she was deprived of the custody of her two surviving daughters, and has exercised the right to remain silent. She has also hired a fourth criminal lawyer; a litigation attorney renown for achieving the shortest possible sentence in a notorious murder case. These cyber bullies seem to be annoyed whenever the people of Puerto Rico find expression for their opinions and concerns, and thus have resorted to rather primitive ways of coercion using the latest technology. A paradox, isn’t it?

Cyber Crime Investigations ,Bridging the Gaps Between Security Professionals, Law Enforcement, &Prosecutors 2007 publication

Fourth Lawyer Hired by Lorenzo's Mother

In a quite expected move, Ana Cacho, the mother of the eight year old boy who was brutally murdered on March 9 in his own home, in circumstances that have not been clarified yet, hired a fourth attorney.

This lawyer is Antonio Sagardía, a famed criminal defense lawyer who was Puerto Rico’s Secretary of Justice in 2009. He resigned last December. His short career with the government was controversial. First, he gave a contract to a former business partner as an adviser. Then he engaged in an argument with a legislator who questioned that contract during a session. During the disagreement, Sagardía used epithets such as "intellectual midget", "idiot" and "pigeon lawyer" referring to the legislator. In addition, Sagardía was criticized because he did not inhibit from the beginning during the accusation and investigation of an offender he had represented in the past. This person is Alexis Candelario, who allegedly planned a massacre in a night club that resulted in several deaths of innocent people. The media informed that this investigation is still active and advanced, according to the prosecutors.

Ever since Sagardía was hired by Ana Cacho, he has tried to vindicate this mother’s image. She is being criticized for remaining silent during the investigation of her own son’s death, for allegedly not being aware that her son was killed in her own home and for delaying medical attention. At first,however, Ana Cacho was questioned as a suspect.

Sagardía had previously represented one of Ana Cacho’s relatives in a 2004 case. Mr. Roberto Cacho Cambó was accused of infringement of Puerto Rico’s weapon laws. According to the Puerto Rico newspaper “Primera Hora”,the "Cacho Cambó surname also surfaced in 2005, during the murder investigation of the Canadian citizen Adam Anhang, who was Cacho’s friend and business partner”. Now that Sagardía is representing Ana Cacho.

More than forty days have passed since the killing of Lorenzo Gonzalez Cacho. The people of Puerto Rico are demanding justice, once and for all, through various cyber forums. Marches and vigils have been organized, as the Justice Department claims that the investigation is progressing. But people want to see more progress. One person wrote: What are you all waiting for [to arrest the suspects]? What else do you need to know? I think you have enough information… I think the mother has information… and her attitude is not normal…

The main question people are asking is why, after so long, no one has been arrested. According to the cyber forums, they wonder about the possibility that the implicated in this case are being protected because they allegedly know and socialize with important political leaders. One forum user reacts: “there is so much uncertainty surrounding this case ... many people remaining silent...there's something fishy here . In fact, Ana’s cousin named José Cacho is the president of the Cacho Group, a developer currently working with the Puerto Rico Department of Economic Development and Commerce in the proposed development projects for the islands of Vieques and Culebra. There is evidence of a $35,000 donation by the Cachos during the 2008 political campaign in favor of Pedro Pierluisi, the current Resident Commissioner in Washington, whom José Cacho has been photographed with while attending what seems to be a celebration.

People spontaneously created several internet groups and pages demanding justice for Lorenzo in the Facebook social network. These keep people informed on the latest developments and post tv and radio interviews about the case. One of these groups underwent hacker attacks. The hackers eliminated the boy’s pictures and instead placed satanic, bloody and tacky pictures showing the number 666. In addition, El Vocero newspaper reported that these groups will be investigated by the Cyber Crimes Division, because the users vent their opinions there, including the perception that Ana may have committed the crime. ”Apparently, the Cachos believe they are untouchable”, say the contributors to the forums.

"El Vocero" newspaper reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will join the local investigation, because of the relationship and communication existing between Ana Cacho and federal immigration agent William Marrero Rivera, who had been visiting the Cacho residence the night of the murder.

This unresolved crime has affected Puerto Rican families in several ways: first, because an innocent child was brutally murdered and, second, because of a generalized perception that something irregular is going on and they are not afraid to give opinions. The truth is that the silence of Ana Cacho, the “public relations campaign” by her new lawyer, the delays in the investigation, the Cacho family relationships with influential politicians, the interference of one or more hackers in the Internet groups, plus the involvement of the FBI in the investigation may indicate that people’s perceptions are not that mistaken.


Justice for Lorenzo, an angel that didn’t hurt anyone, but was hurt by others. Post by Alexander .

Mi imperfect nation
On a given Saturday, the main newspaper in Puerto Rico could be very depressing. It was on April 10, 2010. The first page shows the news of a two year old girl who was dead when she arrived at the hospital. Her tiny body was bruised and showed human bite markings. The girl’s biological father was arrested. Witnesses interviewed said they could always hear the high-tone arguments he and his wife had most of the time, while the girl’s maternal grandfather reacted by saying that he was aware the child was being abused and that his wife – the girl’s grandmother—once called the Department of Families and Children. The information provided by the paper regarding this issue is quite ambiguous. This is my translation of El Nuevo Dia, page 4: “The maternal grandfather said that Gisselle’s mother had notified the Department of Families and the Police about an alleged child abuse pattern [in this family]. However, the following sentence states: “The Secretary of the Department of Families, Ms. Yanitzia Irizarry, said that the couple did not have a record of child abuse.” The people started to wonder, Did they ever investigate?
On the next page (5), there’s an article related to eight year old Lorenzo González-Cacho’s death. A month after his tragic the Puerto Rico Police Department was still behind in an investigation should have been concluded.
Lorenzo, a child who excelled in soccer and was admired by friends and teammates, died on March 9, 2010, after being hit in the head with a sharp object. That night, he was in his home along with his mother Ana Cacho, his two sisters (ages 13 and 5) and two men who were visiting Mrs. Cacho until well past midnight. The Cacho residence lies in an upper-middle class suburb in Dorado, Puerto Rico. It was not until Lorenzo’s younger sister noted that Lorenzo was bleeding on his bed the boy's mother realized what happened. Still, an hour and a half elapsed until Lorenzo was taken to an emergency room. People started to speculate about this case, including that the boy’s mother, Ana Cacho, might have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol, but this theory was discarded after the mother underwent a drug screening test which, authorities say, was negative. Inexplicably, the laboratory where Cacho went to have the tests done was vandalized a few days after she was there.
As days passed and became weeks, and still no one was arrested, the residents of Puerto Rico became even more interested and involved in this case: a young innocent boy received a mortal blow in his own home, while sleeping on his bed. What appeared to be obvious to all Puerto Rican citizens was not for the police investigators on the island: (a) at the crime scene there were three adults and three children (b) one child is now dead (c) there were no hiding or fleeing suspects to be caught; and (d) that the forensic pathologist confirmed that Lorenzo was brutally murdered.
Meanwhile, Ana Cacho hired three prominent lawyers, because she has the financial means to do so, and has remained silent.

On the other hand, the Department of Families, headed by Yanitzia Irizarry, took a long time to intervene and remove the girls from the maternal aunt's house, where they were staying, even after it was known that their mother was being questioned as a suspect. It is obvious that the girls may feel inhibited in providing information that may incriminate their own mother while staying inside the family. Now that the girls are physically separated from the maternal family, they might be able to communicate what they saw or heard that night.
The popular opinion here in Puerto Rico was that, for some unknown reason (including protecting someone that may be involved in the murder), the investigation was delayed unnecessarily. In addition, people believed that the Police Department, led by Jose Figueroa Sancha, seemed to cater a special treatment to Cacho. People seemed to agree that, if the crime had been committed in a humble and marginalized sector, the story would have been otherwise: someone would have been prosecuted earlier.

The Internet became a forum where people expressed their frustration and pain regarding what they call lack of justice for Lorenzo. After reading the opinions posted by different people in different groups, the concerns of the vast majority of the residents of Puerto Rico about this case were:

Why is Lorenzo's mother silent? Many of the women who wrote their ideas are mothers, and they stated they “would not hesitate to cooperate with the investigation” and that, instead of remaining silent, they would “scream from the rooftops all they know about the case”. The comments in the Facebook group "Justice for Lorenzo" are sometimes overwhelming: "Ana Cacho, speak up at once and be free." Or: "This Ana, to me, is a worthless mother." And: "I cannot understand this woman, she has a stone inside her chest instead of a heart."

On top of everything, Ana's lawyers organized an odd press conference to clarify to the media and the people of Puerto Rico that the mother’s silence responds to their explicit instructions. However, the Facebook user with the pseudonym Palabras Encadenadas provided the following information: “In the practice, very few lawyers would suggest their clients to exercise their right to remain silent… which is likely to be taken negatively by the judge ... and that would cast doubt about the guilt of the accused ...

To make things worse, these internet groups circulated photos which showed Ana Cacho in a variety of social activities, mostly holding alcoholic drinks, and a in a carefree attitude.

People also wonder: why such an unusual delay in this particular case? Forum users described their feelings about this as: "Outraged ... because connections, power, and money in this case prevail over justice”. Others spoke directly to the authorities: "Mr. Governor, Mr. Secretary of Justice we have been waiting for 31 days and we still don’t know what happened to this child. The murderer is still free and we want justice ".

Another common topic was: why does social class distinction exist in the justice system? A participant wrote: “If justice does exist, it must be [delivered equally] to everyone, no one can be excluded, otherwise it would no longer be justice”.

Despite the public outrage, the Police Chief Josí Figueroa Sancha announced to the media that he didn’t foresaw a deadline for the completion of the investigation. Meanwhile, people are still demanding justice for Lorenzo, if not worldly, then heavenly: "I trust God that soon we will know who committed this horrendous crime against this little angel," wrote another contributor to the group.

In April 2010 the Director of the Department of Families was interviewed by Associated Press reporter Omar Marrero. She disclosed that in Puerto Rico “at least 200 children are abused every month,” and that many more cases go unreported. Even though the majority of the reported cases have to do with negligence (for example, not paying attention to a child’s medical problem or school progress) there are still many cases of physical and emotional abuse and even child exploitation. This last item includes forcing the children to work (in farms or family businesses) even though they are not of legal age to work—which is 16 in Puerto Rico.

Unusual Delay in The Murder Investigation of an Eight Year Old Boy