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Nahir Galarza, the 19 year-old woman sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of her former boyfriend Fernando Pastorizzo, was allegedly pregnant two months before committing the crime that shocked the country. A few weeks after the message was sent from Galarza to Pastorizzo last October, a later message suggested she suffered a miscarriage. The response from 20 year-old Pastorizzo: “Don’t worry, we’ll try again.”

Pastorizzo was fatally shot by Galarza in on December 29, 2017; last week she received a life sentence for his murder. Today, a feminist march in support of her release has been planned in Buenos Aires.

The prosecutor of the case, Sergio Rondoni Caffa, revealed the 104,000 WhatsApp messages sent between the pair in the past year prior to Pastorizzo’s death. This acted as pivotal evidence to establish a concrete sentimental relationship between them, serving as a link to the theory that it was aggravated homicide.

More conclusively, a private sex tape between the young couple further enforces their connection. The explicit video was found in Pastorrizo’s email and was later decoded by computer experts during the investigation. Galarza threatened to commit suicide if the video was presented during the trial.

Only five people had restricted access to the material: the judge, the prosecutor, and the parties’ lawyers – a measure to to protect their privacy. However, the video leaked and began to circulate online. One of Galarza’s lawyers revealed that the images had gone viral. Yesterday he commented: “We are angry and sad about what’s happened. Tomorrow [today] we are going to file for ‘amparo‘ (protection) to prevent it from spreading.”

Meanwhile, militant feminists who disagree with the sentence Nahir received have argued that the justice system is contaminated by patriarchal sentiment and will congregate today at the offices of the Entre Ríos province in the city of Buenos Aires under the slogan “Absolution and Freedom for Nahir Galarza.”

According to organizers, there will be “stencils and stickers for the freedom of Nahir and other women jailed for defending themselves.” Speeches dedicated to Nahir will also take place at the rally, under the title: “We believe you because we know.” A fan club dedicated to Nahir was removed from Facebook hours after the verdict was released.

On the blog “Todx Presx es Políticx“ the writers maintain the view: “Already condemned socially before the trial, Nahir received what many of us understand as an ‘exemplary sentence’ that aims to teach lesbians, trans women, non-binaries and women who suffer hetero-patriarchal violence daily a lesson.”

Many claim that Nahir was the victim of a media-sponsored witch hunt; while not all are convinced of her guilt, the overarching focus of the backlash is on the speed with which her case came to trial and ultimately reached a verdict. Meanwhile, family members of femicidio victims are often left waiting months or even years before suspects are brought to justice. One man who brutally murdered a 15 year-old girl was even released from prison early and was found on Tinder looking for a new girlfriend.

SIN PALABRAS…

Convocan a una marcha a favor de Nahir Galarza y advierten: "'Muerte al macho' no es solo una metáfora" https://t.co/se93PpI1CH — Matias Bagnato (@MatiBagnato) July 7, 2018

Many have taken to Twitter to express their indignation on the forthcoming rally for Nahir, stating: “There are no words… Calling for a march in support of Nahir Galarza and they warn ‘muerte al macho‘ is no longer a metaphor.”