TDoR list ref: tgeu/29-Aug-2020/Melody Barrera Melody Barrera [photo: www.facebook.com]
Melody was shot six times by the occupant of a passing vehicle and died at the scene. Three weeks later a police officer was arrested for her murder.
A [trans woman] was shot this morning from a car in Guaymallén and died on the spot, police sources confirmed.
The brutal attack occurred at 4 in the morning at the corner of the eastern side of Costanera and Correa Saa, in Guaymallén. The fatal victim was identified as Melody Barrera, 27, the sources added.
A call to 911 alerted emergency services to a person lying on the public highway. When they arrived they found a trans woman was lying on the sidewalk, who, at first glance, had several gunshot wounds to the chest. The presence of an SEC ambulance was quickly requested, but upon arrival, the professional in charge determined that Barrera had died.
Initial investigations suggest that the assailants would have passed by in a vehicle firing shots, fatally wounding Barrera. Several 9mm caliber shell casings were recovered.
29/08/2020 The Compañera #Melody was shot, she lived in Guaymallen (Prov de Mendoza).
The brutal act happened at 4 am on the corner of the east side of Costanera and Correa Saa, in Guaymallén.
The fatal victim was identified as 27-year-old Melody Barrera, sources added.
Another partner killed, until when will this continue to happen and as always NO ONE STOPPED.
RIP BEAUTIFUL.
Three weeks after the murder, Darío Jesús Chaves Rubio, 31, - a police officer - was arrested.
Almost three weeks after the violent crime and following the analysis of security cameras in the area and the testimony of witnesses, the provincial Public Prosecutor's Office requested the arrest of the possible murderer: Darío Jesús Chaves Rubio (31), Principal Assistant of Police Station 34 of the Banking District of Godoy Cruz , who from now on must face a serious accusation.
The Prosecutor of Instruction Carolina Lazo, of the Mendoza Homicide Fiscal Unit, charged him with the crime of homicide aggravated by hatred of gender expression in an ideal contest with homicide aggravated by the use of a firearm , and in a real contest for quarantine violation. This strong accusation places the cash in front of the possibility of a life sentence.
Key to the arrest of the suspect was the statement of a witness who claimed to have met him before the crime and who had told him that he was going "to look for a gun and shoot the transvestite” - clear evidence that the murder was a transphobic hate crime.
Chaves was convicted of Melody's murder and sentenced to life in prison in September 2022:
The former police officer Darío Jesús Chaves Rubio was sentenced this Thursday to life in prison for the murder of Melody Barrera. It is the first time in the history of Mendoza that a transvesticide has been judged.
Chaves was tried by a popular jury that unanimously found him guilty of aggravated homicide due to the use of a firearm, aggravated by hatred of gender expression.
A subsequent article described his character as "narcissistic and sadistic":
The policeman Darío Chaves Rubio went in the early hours of August 29, 2020 in search of the sexual services offered by Melody Barrera, a 27-year-old transgender woman, in the Mendoza town of Guaymallén. But something happened at that moment and she pepper sprayed him. The defendant left, but he promised to return. He went to get his service weapon and returned to end Melody's life. He shot her five times. "An almost perfect aim", the prosecution would say because he missed only one of the six that he fired. This week he was sentenced to life in prison.
But, what was his personality like, now, an ex-policeman? The psychological skills described him as a person who can act "explosively and aggressively" when they do not respond to his wishes and is "hypersensitive to rejection", among other traits. They also mentioned that he has a "low tolerance for frustration" and is "self-centered." It was also noted that he has a narcissistic and sadistic profile.
“Chaves Rubio wanted revenge: Melody's death. Until the day he was arrested, he led his life normally, with absolute indifference. He still carries his same gun. I think he does this because of the omnipotence that he feels, based on his personality, to play for this fact to go unpunished. The only thing that matters to him is the 'me', he could never mention Melody (when he testified at the trial), he didn't say 'sorry'. Melody continued to be an object at that time and today, "said prosecutor Fernando Guzzo in the closing arguments that took place last Thursday. He also stressed that she had a "narcissistic and sadistic" profile.
The complaint also appealed to the personality of the former police officer described by the psychological tests that had been carried out on him. “Chaves Rubio went to buy Melody's sexual services. He went to get a toilet. Chaves Rubio was a regular at the place, according to witnesses. Just as he bought people, he believed they were objects. If they didn't satisfy his wishes, he discarded them. He stopped using it, it was no longer useful to him, ”described the lawyer Viviana Beigel.
“And all this is consistent with psychological expertise: he has a low tolerance for frustration, he does not control his impulses, he is self-centered, he has demanding and possessive behaviors. He is hypersensitive to rejection and when they do not respond to his wishes, he can act in an explosive and aggressive manner," explained Melody's mother's lawyer, emphasizing: "As the expert witness Cecilia Carrasco said, Chaves Rubio makes a law of his needs, because he is the only valid one. So it's clear: he went to get a gun and shot Melody the shit, because she could be discarded. Because for him, Melody's life was not worth it."
