Fall or assault? Hospital director raises suspicions over Hugo Javier’s injuries

The condition of former Central governor Hugo Javier González has raised new questions after doctors examined the injuries he suffered in prison. González remains in intensive care at the National Hospital of Itauguá after an incident in his cell at Esperanza penitentiary, where he is serving a 10-year sentence.

A preliminary report from Paraguay’s Justice Ministry said González suffered a stroke and then fell in the bathroom of his cell. But Miguel Ferreira, director of the National Hospital, said the injuries did not immediately show a clear connection with a simple fall.

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It may be that they were caused by a fall, but the size of the bruise strikes us as unusual for a single fall.

Doctors found bruising on the frontal area of his face and around both eyes, as well as abrasions and a small bruise on one forearm. Ferreira said the size of the facial bruising was difficult to reconcile with a fall alone. “It may be that they were caused by a fall, but the size of the bruise strikes us as unusual for a single fall,” he said.

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There is a suspicion that there is something else, which we will confirm with the CT scan.

The director said the findings created a suspicion that something else might have occurred, but he stopped short of confirming an assault. “There is not much coherence in that regard,” Ferreira said of the fall explanation. He added that medical tests would establish the type of trauma and guide treatment.

A full-body CT scan and other diagnostic studies were planned to test the different hypotheses about the injuries. Ferreira said the results would help determine whether the trauma was consistent with the reported fall or required another explanation.

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There is not much coherence in that regard.