{"id":15315,"date":"2026-08-06T19:59:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T00:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/?p=15315"},"modified":"2026-08-05T22:56:26","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T03:56:26","slug":"panama-ex-officials-assaulted-complaint-filed-against-mayor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/crime-safety\/panama-ex-officials-assaulted-complaint-filed-against-mayor\/","title":{"rendered":"Panama Ex-Officials Assaulted, Complaint Filed Against Mayor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A lawyer for ex-officials assaulted by municipal police during a protest over unpaid severance payments has filed a criminal complaint against Panama City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi, the director of the municipal police<\/a>, and the agent who attacked former employee Alberto Llerena. Attorney Valent\u00edn Ja\u00e9n argued that the severity of the beating, which left Llerena with a fractured vertebra and a brain injury, constitutes attempted homicide and demanded immediate action from the Public Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“We directed the complaint against the aggressor, against the police director and against the mayor, and we noted that we are facing a crime of attempted homicide” [Translated from Spanish]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Ja\u00e9n said in an interview. The complaint was lodged late Monday, just hours after a group of dismissed workers gathered at the Hatillo administrative building to demand the municipality pay outstanding labor benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"El
El alcalde Mayer Mizrachi presento\u0301 la visio\u0301n de Seguridad Urbana by Policia municipal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Ex-Officials Assaulted as Protest Over Unpaid Benefits Turns Violent<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The confrontation erupted on Monday, August 3, when former municipal employees returned to press for compensation they say was never delivered after a wave of dismissals two weeks earlier. Videos circulating on social media captured the moment an agent chased Llerena, delivered a kick that sent him crashing to the ground, and stood by as other officers surrounded him. Ja\u00e9n identified the officer as Inspector S\u00e1nchez, calling him \u201cthe instigator, the material author\u201d of the violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Llerena underwent surgery at Santo Tom\u00e1s Hospital, where doctors stabilized a ruptured upper vertebra. Yet his condition remains critical. He has not regained full consciousness and continues to suffer from a hemorrhage that doctors have been unable to control. Family members described him speaking incoherently after the intervention. A head injury caused by the blow prompted his admission to the intensive care unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mayor
mayor mizrachi municipal private police taken from social media<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Attempted Homicide Claim Based on Video and Medical Evidence<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The legal filing leans heavily on videos and witness testimony that Ja\u00e9n says will serve as a foundation for prosecutors. In one widely shared recording, the agent pursues Llerena, kicks him down, and other officers close in, a sequence the defense presents as a deliberate act of extreme violence rather than a momentary loss of control. Medical records detail the spinal fracture and the neurological damage that followed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ja\u00e9n told the Public Ministry<\/a> that the nature of the injuries, combined with the manner in which the officer attacked, elevates the case beyond simple abuse of authority. He also framed the events as a crime against humanity, arguing it must not be subject to any statute of limitations. The complaint calls for criminal charges not just against the officer who struck Llerena but also against his superiors for allegedly allowing a repressive environment to fester within the municipal police force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mayor responded publicly on Tuesday, saying he regretted the incident and acknowledged that the conduct of the municipal police \u201cwas not exactly\u201d what he expects from a force whose function should be deterrence, not aggression. But Ja\u00e9n dismissed that explanation, insisting that officers act on orders from above. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“The mayor cannot come out now to say there was an excess on the part of the Municipal Police. He cannot justify it like that. The police act in response to what their superior dictates” [Translated from Spanish], the attorney said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Illegal Detention Allegations and Conflicting Accounts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Beyond the assault, Ja\u00e9n alleged that several former employees were held illegally for roughly ten hours. He said municipal police detained them from 2 p.m. until midnight without a judicial order, and family members had no information about their whereabouts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n