“The conviction of Humberto Allende, the mayor of [the city of] Cerro de las Cuentas [in the department of Cerro Largo, Uruguay], for sexual abuse had a controversial and televised closure: Allende threatened to hit and insulted a journalist who was covering the case and was seeking a statement [...] The journalist is Valeria Coronel. She works for Canal 12 of [the city of] Melo.
[...] Coronel said that, at the moment [of the aggression], she reacted with surprise and astonishment to Allende's violence. 'When he came out, I approached him and asked him if he would make a statement. I did not expect his reaction. I was frozen,' she said.
Coronel and other colleagues from Cerro Largo had been waiting for several hours for the court decision. One of Allende's lawyers had told them that after the sentence, the now former mayor may give a statement.”
