Victor Cespedes Martinez, the former attorney general of the Dominican Republic under the Mejia Administration, has had his visa to enter the United States cancelled. The permanent revocation of his travel permit was based on Section 212 of the Nationalization and Immigration Law, which declares anyone presumed to be or having been an illegal trafficker of controlled substances ineligible for entry. The law also punishes anyone who “may be or has been a know collaborator or accomplice” in these type of activities. The consular section of the United States embassy notified Cespedes Martines last Tuesday, according to an embassy press release. Citing Section 212(a) 2(c) of the Naturalization and Immigrations Law, the revocation also applies to members of his family, including his wife and children. The visa cancellation came just five days after incumbent Attorney General Francisco Dominguez Brito revoked a release order for jailed drug trafficker Lourdes Machuca, who was then freed from prison under the aegis of an order from Cespedes and was granted for purported health issues. Machuca was under indictment for money laundering and assets of over RD$100 million were confiscated at the time of her arrest. In August, Dominguez Brito also revoked a release order for Mariza Aquino who was under indictment for trafficking heroine, as well as Ormis Freddy Pena Mendez, the former vice-consul in Port a Prince, Haiti, who had been sentenced to 10 years for trafficking 42.9 kilos of cocaine. All these people had been released by Cespedes Martines, as well as 80 others whose cases are currently under investigation by the Justice Department.
Victor Cespedes was appointed to the job in January 2003 after the resignation of Virgilio Bello Rosa from the post. Bello Rosa resigned after denouncing that there was no will within the government to combat corruption.
Although Cespedes is the first former Mejia administration official to have his visa revoked, the US had previously announced the cancellation of visas for three Mejia government officers while still in office. Those individuals were the head of presidential security, Colonel Pedro Julio (Pepe) Goico Guerrero; the head of the Migration Department, Miguel Vasquez and legal advisor Guido Gomez Mazara.