This Monday, the historical public trial in Chubut for the massacre of penguins in Punta Tombo began. Ricardo La Regina, a livestock producer and owner of a field adjacent to the nature reserve, is accused of running over the nests of these animals with an excavator in 2021.
He did this to open a path, resulting in the death of hundreds of Magellanic penguins, as well as the destruction of another hundred eggs.
During the first day of the trial, which marks a true milestone in environmental matters in the country, La Regina defended himself and even tried to reach an agreement.
Trial for the penguins of Punta Tombo: La Regina offered 560 hectares
In a tense start to the trial, defense attorney Federico Ruffa made a specific proposal to resolve the conflict surrounding the nature reserve and his client’s property.
“We are willing to make available to the State 300 hectares adjacent to Punta Tombo for its expansion, and in turn, create a protection area in the area of Punta Clara, which would encompass about 260 more hectares,” detailed La Regina’s representative.
The accused in the penguin massacre at Punta Tombo: “There was no other way”
“It was always on my mind to do something like this because I always had trouble working in livestock farming, as there is no real boundary between the Punta Tombo reserve and my property,” acknowledged La Regina at the start of the process.
“There is a management plan that implies a division and use of the land, but it is impossible to comply because there is no tangible boundary,” he added.
In his statement, he added: “that management plan is contradictory because it says that livestock farming is allowed. The two activities are not compatible.”
Additionally, during a break on the first day, he expressed in dialogue with TN, “With hindsight, it is easier to say that it was not the correct way. But due to the context and conditions in which the events unfolded, there was also no other way because they were stealing my only livelihood, cattle,” he said.
“The State was absent for more than 10 years, and the Justice system did not act at that time,” he maintained.
Next steps in the trial
The process will last at least 10 days, and 60 witnesses from both sides will testify. This represents a turning point for Argentine environmental justice, generating high expectations.
“As prosecuting organizations, Greenpeace Argentina, Patagonia Natural Foundation, and the Argentine Association of Environmental Lawyers are committed to not only seeking justice for the penguins and their habitat in this case but also to bring about systemic change in conservation policies,” they state from the legal group.
The Punta Tombo massacre
By making a path with large machines, he crushed about 140 penguin nests—approximately three penguins per nest—in a high-density area of chicks that were going to have chicks from Magallanes to the reserve—and electrocuted another hundred in the reserve.
The events also caused the death of 292 chicks and eggs of the species and the loss of 2000 square meters of native vegetation in the provincial nature reserve.
The Prosecutor’s Office explained at the time that it was done on a field adjacent to Punta Tombo, next to the reserve.
The general prosecutor of Rawson, leading the investigation, Florencia Gómez, ordered a raid within two hours to verify the incident. The commission included mounted police, forensics, investigators, the Rawson police station, Ministry personnel, park rangers, biologists, and CENPAT members.
Almost three years later, she achieved something historic: the first public and oral trial in Argentina for aggravated environmental damage and animal cruelty. In addition, La Regina faces a sentence of up to 4 years of effective imprisonment.
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