Part I
The Repression

Nunca Más (Never Again) - Report of Conadep  - 1984
 

Secret detention centres in Córdoba province

Building of the San Roque Dam Water Authority

There was a secret detention centre at the headquarters of the provincial water authority, near the wall of the San Roque dam in Carlos Paz. It was incorporated into the network in 1976, according to a report by the authority which was given to the Commission on the Disappeared:

The building assigned to the board was handed over to the Córdoba police so that they could guard the San Roque dam works between 1976 and 1979, and during that period we could not inspect it.

With the help of witnesses, the Commission on Disappeared People was able to establish beyond all doubt that a secret detention centre operated in this place, with various functions: as a transit or torture centre for prisoners from other camps, or to take apart vehicles used for repression or that had been stolen from the streets for this purpose. The testimony of J.C. (file No.6139) proves this:

In the patio of the house I saw vehicles that had been taken apart or dismantled. I remember a Renault 12, among others. The vehicles must have been thrown into the dam, as once when the water level went down I saw several chassis,

This was corroborated by the Commission on Disappeared People when divers recovered cars from the place, including the above-mentioned Renault 12.

On 9 July 1978 the body of a young man was found, his hands tied, with bruises, burns, and broken limbs, buried in a pit near the water authority chalet.

This discovery and the involvement of the Carlos Paz police are recorded in the Tasks and Log Book of the Sailing, Hunting, and Fishing Authority and in the log book of the local police, dated July 1978. The examining magistrate referred the proceedings to Intelligence Division UR3. This Commission has established that the evidence was not recorded for reference either by the court or Intelligence Division UR3.