Court places former ETA member under house arrest in 1986 murder inquiry

The High Court on Thursday placed convicted ETA terrorist Jesús María Uribetxebarria Bolinaga under house arrest and told him that he could only leave his home accompanied by security officials to keep his doctor’s appointments.

Bolinaga, who was released from prison in 2012 after a court determined he was suffering from terminal cancer, is facing new charges related to the death of Civil Guard officer Antonio Ramos, who was gunned down in a 1986 shootout in Mondragón. According to High Court Judge Ismael Moreno, Bolinaga fired three shots that evening.

The Ramos murder case was closed in 1987 after a court determined that there wasn’t enough evidence to charge any suspects with the shooting death. The case was reopened recently when prosecutors presented the High Court a new report implicating Bolinaga.

The case was reopened recently when prosecutors presented a new report implicating Bolinaga

His High Court hearing was conducted via video conference. He arrived dressed in black, and accompanied by family and friends.

Bolinga had been serving a lengthy sentence for the kidnapping of José Antonio Ortega Lara, a top prison director who was held for 532 days in captivity. He was found cooped up in a nine-by-seven foot windowless room after 60 police officers stormed a factory basement in northern Spain in July 1997.

Bolinga’s release sparked controversy among government officials, who were trying to keep him from being released. There were discrepancies in medical reports as to the seriousness of his illness and doubts about whether he could continue to receive adequate treatment at a prison hospital.