The Criminal Court Number 3 of Arrecife has rejected the incident of nullity presented by a dozen buyers of homes in La Bufona, who intended to avoid the partial demolition of their homes by asking for the annulment of the sentence that condemned the promoters of this partial plan. The ruling, which was ratified on February 14 by the Provincial Court and is therefore final, condemned the architect Federico Echevarría and the builder Antonio Caro for a continued crime against land management and, in addition to the prison sentences, disqualification and fine, also imposed on them the order to demolish the part of the houses illegally built on protected rural land.
Already in the execution phase of that sentence, 10 buyers appeared in the procedure requesting the nullity of the proceedings, "specifically the pronouncement of condemnation to the demolition of the works", since they maintained that it directly affected them, "since they are the owners of the constructions".
In this regard, they questioned that at no time were they part of the criminal proceedings -although they were summoned to testify as witnesses- and asked that the proceedings be retroacted to the instruction phase. In their writing, which has been rejected by the judge, they argued that before going to trial they should have been given a transfer of the proceedings, "in order to allow their appearance in the proceedings".
A "completely inadmissible" claim
"It is not appreciated that there has been effective defenselessness due to an effective violation of any fundamental right," says the provision with which the judge responds to this request from the buyers of the houses. In addition, it points out that it is "completely inadmissible to claim the nullity" of this sentence when it has already become final, after being confirmed by the Court, and when a request for clarification of the ruling has also been dismissed, in relation to the demolition of what was illegally built.
In this regard, it should be recalled that the two convicted promoters maintained that it was the buyers who should pay for the demolition, since they claim that they were the ones who carried out the works without a license and expanded the homes after acquiring them, using the rear of the houses to build swimming pools, pergolas and expansion of rooms, occupying protected rural land. Among the owners of these houses are the island president of the PP, Ástrid Pérez, and the then coordinating prosecutor of Lanzarote, Miguel Palláres.
"It is not clarified or specified which are the works to be demolished since, as we have already indicated actively and passively, except for the perimeter fence of the plot, the interior works that are not part of the building, were carried out by the respective owners," the promoters pointed out when requesting a clarification of the sentence. However, that request was rejected, and so has now been the incident of nullity promoted by several buyers, so the execution of the ruling will continue.
In addition, this demolition order issued in the criminal proceedings is added to the demolition orders decreed by the Agency for the Protection of the Urban and Natural Environment, which expressly affect the subsequent works that were carried out without a license, and for which the promoters hold the owners of the houses responsible.
