The Federal trial against the music producer, Rafael Antonio “Raphy” Pina Nieves, began today, Monday, in person at the Federal Court of Hato Rey, in the city of San Juan, with the selection of the jury.
Pina Nieves faces charges of illegal possession of a firearm and possession of a machine gun after being indicted by a federal grand jury on August 13, 2020. The producer is represented by Francisco Rebollo Casalduc, María Domínguez Trujillo and Javier Micheo Marcial.
Judge Francisco Besosa leads the trial proceedings, which are expected to last about a week.
During the hearing, Judge Besosa passed a list of some of the witnesses who would be testifying as part of the case, among them Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez, better known as Daddy Yankee, and Antulio “Kobbo” Santarrosa, a puppeteer better known for his character, La Comay.
The trial was scheduled to begin on October 18, but Judge Besosa agreed to a request from the defense to postpone it due to the allegation that the group of defenders needed more time to prepare after identifying several relevant articles that had not been been supplied by the Public Ministry.
Pina is charged with possessing a Glock model 19 pistol 9mm and modified to fire automatically, a Smith & Wesson pistol, model SD40 and dozens of ammunition for .40 caliber pistols, ammunition for caliber 5.7 pistols, as well as for rifles and shotguns, among others.
It should be noted that the weapons were seized by federal agents during a raid last year on a property of the producer, located in the Caguas Real community and the Rogelio’s Ice Plant gas station, also in Caguas, Puerto Rico.
These documents included a series of laboratory studies conducted with fingerprint evidence allegedly recovered from a residence in Pina’s name. The proof of the case consists of 9,000 items.
In August 2020, the reggaeton producer pleaded not guilty to charges of illegal possession of firearms and was released after being set on a $ 1 million bond.
The initial hearing, the formal arraignment hearing, and the bail hearing were held on August 14, 2020, before federal magistrate Camille Vélez Rivé. During the hearing, which was held virtually, the magistrate read Pina Nieves’ rights and informed her that he is exposed to penalties of up to ten years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
On August 13, 2020, Pina Nieves was indicted by a federal grand jury. The investigation of the case was in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Federal Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
