For years Dominican governments have been lax in requiring that motorcyclists and owners of aging cars have the correct documentation and safety conditions of their vehicles. Now, Digesett agents have been enforcing the law and asking motorcyclists to show their documentation and meet minimal safety requirements. Digesett is a division of the National Police.
The plight of those who make a living with their motorcycles and experience difficulties in retrieving their vehicles that have been seized by the Digesett has put the spotlight on the Canódromo, where most of the vehicles are taken.
The situation exploded when unexplainably, the director of the Canodromo impeded the Ombudsman accompanied by journalists to do their job on Monday, 11 April 2022. Ombudsman Pedro Pablo Ulloa visited the Canódromo that day accompanied by media and these were violently impeded to tour the facility and take photographs or videos. At the time center director, Colonel Ysabelita de los Santos would be photographed with a golf club she said she used to defend herself. The aggressiveness of De los Santos and her assistants that impeded the inspection has raised all sorts of speculations.
News analyst Huchi Lora urged the authorities to carry out an in depth investigation into what is really going on at the Digesett Vehicular Detention Center. He made the remark in a YouTube commentary after the Ombudsman Pedro Pablo Ulloa and his assistant, accompanied by camera crew and journalists from the Listin Diario and CDN TV, were beaten up and impeded to advance into the center by orders of the director. The cameras, mobile phones and even an Apple watch of the journalists were removed. Later the cameras and mobile phones were returned but the footage taken by the journalists at the center had been wiped as well as other data.
Huchi Lora speculated: “The display of violence at the Canodromo, that is the responsibility of the Digesett, makes one think that they are hiding something much worse than what the public defender went to investigate. The public defender went to investigate for himself the many complaints he had been receiving about illegally seized vehicles, illegal charges for the return of the vehicles to the due ownres, theft of vehicles and parts. It seems that there is something more serious if they panicked once people with cameras entered.”
Lora called for a thorough search and investigtion to find out what they want to hide with so much violence and brazenness.
After the incident went viral on social media and in the press, the director of Digesett apologized and suspended the director of the center, Colonel Ysabelita de los Santos.
President Luis Abinader received the Ombudsman Pedro Pablo Ulloa at the Presidential Palace after he was violently attacked when visiting the Digesett Vehicular Retention Center (El Canódromo) on Easter Monday. On Monday, an employee at the Canódromo punched the assistant to the Ombudsman, another official dragged a journalist taking her cell phone. Another had his Apple watch removed. The President called for an investigation into the violent acts against the ombudsman and the press.
The Bishop of La Altagracia, Monsignor Jesus Castro Marte went further in his opinion, saying the center should be dismantled, as reported in El Caribe.
The today suspended director of the center, Colonel Ysabelita de los Santos, said she will not “take a beating from anyone” during a phone interview for El Sol de la Mañana radio talk show. She said under her management much corruption at the center had been eradicated.
Yet, in an earlier interview with investigative journalist Alicia Ortega, then director of the Canódromo Colonel de los Santos had explained the back load at the Canodromo is because most of the motorcyclists circulating on streets do not have legal documentation. This is why the motorcycles are retained and sent to the center.
Listin Diario reported that according to Digesett statistics, as of 13 April 2022, the entity had retained 33,585 vehicles, including 31,292 motorcycles and 2,293 four-wheel vehicles. In the Canódromo facility, there were 22,552 vehicles, divided in 21,085 motorcycles and 1,467 four wheel vehicles.
The legal advisor of the Digesett, Colonel Robert García Peralta says that many of the vehicles were involved in traffic accidents are there awaiting a judicial order for their release. He says around 300 vehicles are retained every day, but only 50% leave each day.
Listin Diario followed up on the story with a report on the second largest motorcycle retention site in Villa Mella, in northern Santo Domingo.
Meanwhile, the Listin Diario took the complaint on the violent incident to the Interamerican Press Society (Iapa) and CDN TV took the complaint of physical aggression to their staff and damages to their equipment to the Dominican judiciary.
Follow the story:
Huchi Lora
El Informe con Alicia Ortega
Listin Diario
Listin Diario
El Caribe
Listin Diario
Hoy
Noticias SIN
Listin Diario
Listin Diario
El Caribe
El Nuevo Diario
CDN
El Nuevo Diario
El Caribe
Listin Diario
18 April 2022