Peru Recovers Remains of Nine Victims of Forced Disappearance

Why this is here: Prosecutors are investigating the cases of nine individuals who disappeared during a period of roughly 13 years, from 1980 to 2000, due to political violence in Peru.

The Public Ministry of Peru recovered remains and associated items from nine people disappeared between 1990 and 1993 in the Junín region. Prosecutors with the Specialized Human Rights and Anti-Terrorism Office conducted the exhumations in the towns of Dos de Mayo and Villa Progreso, within the Mazamari district of Satipo province. They are investigating if the remains belong to individuals reportedly tortured and killed by members of the Shining Path terrorist group.

The team also seeks to clarify the deaths of Adán Casishahuana, killed by an explosive device, and Aquiles Osores, along with a 15-year-old girl, Bernardo Espinoza, and Luis Alá. The Forensic Specialization Team of the Legal Medicine Institute, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and police units supported the fiscal action with transport and psychosocial support for families.

Identifying the remains and returning them to families is part of Peru’s commitment to human rights and clarifying past disappearances. The process of establishing identities remains complex, and full closure for the families will take time.