Miguel Etchecolatz, arguably Argentina's most despised and despicable criminal, has requested that the Buenos Aires provincial Police reincorporate him into their force as a retired agent.
The 89-year-old is currently serving several life sentences for human rights crimes committed during Argentina's 1976-83 dictatorship.
Etchecolatz was the head of the Investigations unit of the provincial Police until his retirement in 1979 at the age of 50.
In human rights trials that followed the dictatorship, courts found Etchecolatz guilty of crimes including kidnapping, the theft of babies and small children, torture, murder, and disappearances.
He was formally removed from the force last year when provincial Security Ministry officials realised Etchecolatz was considered a retired officer.
The request is likely to reach the Supreme Court. Etchecolatz's lawyers argue that the Buenos Aires government's unilateral decision last year to remove him from the force was "a flagrant abuse of the right to a defence".
-TIMES
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