A female Argentinian judge has been caught on prison camera kissing a convicted cop killer, whom her court had previously sentenced to life imprisonment.

According to Daily Mail, Mariel Suarez, a judge in southern Chubut province, was filmed kissing inmate Cristian "Mai" Bustos at the Penitentiary Institute in Trelew on December 29. The video footage leaked online.

A week earlier, Suarez had sat on a panel of judges deliberating whether Bustos should be given life in jail for killing police officer Leandro "Tito" Roberts in 2009.

Mariel Suarez was the only judge among the three to vote against the life sentence, requesting a lesser penalty be applied instead, despite Bustos being regarded as a "highly dangerous prisoner."

Argentinian Judge Investigated for Kissing a Cop Killer

On Tuesday, the Superior Court of Chubut confirmed that administrative proceedings had been opened against Mariel Suarez for inadequate behavior and is facing possible sanctions.

In a statement, the Superior Court of Chubut said the investigation would seek to determine the circumstances of the meeting between Suarez and the cop killer and how long the meeting lasted.

Cristian "Mai" Bustos was handed a life sentence that started last week. Judges María Laura Martini and Ximena Miranda Nastovich backed Bustos' life term behind bars.

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The Cop Killer Case in Argentina

Cristian "Mai" Bustos had previously stood trial for the killing of Leandro Roberts that was fatally shot in Corcovado, Chubut, The Sun reported. A brother of Bustos also died in the gunfight as Roberts tried to arrest the convict for an earlier prison break.

During the trial, Bustos admitted that he had pulled the trigger for the shot that killed the police officer. He was convicted of homicide and was given a life sentence.

Bustos was already wanted for murdering his baby stepson. The nine-month-old infant was beaten to death in a crime that led to a separate murder conviction and a 20-year prison sentence.

In the autopsy, it was found that the child's spine was fractured as if it had been split in the middle. In deciding the life sentence, the judges considered the extreme violence that resulted in the child's death.

However, the November 2020 sentence was revised, and in June of last year, the life imprisonment was reduced to a sentence of 20 years.

Bustos was referred to a local police station from which he ran away shortly after he was arrested. There were claims that a police officer may have helped Bustos to achieve his escape.

He was on the run for two years and was believed to have been in Chile until news arrived in March 2009 that he would return to celebrate his mother's birthday at the family home.

Meanwhile, Mariel Suarez told Argentinian news website Todo Noticias that there was no kissing during the prison visit, Daily Star reported.

She noted that they were only talking and felt that they were being listened to. The judge said there were "secret talks," people walking nearby, and a camera; that's why they talked "close-up."

Suarez said she does not have any sentimental relationship with Bustos. She noted that she was writing a book on him and that their relationship is a working relationship.

"I believed the version of events he gave at his trial and that's why I voted for a lesser punishment than life imprisonment," the Argentinian judge added.

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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