Ex-wife of slain Argentina prosecutor removes self from suit, citing threats

Argentinean federal Judge Sandra Arroyo Salgado, ex-wife of the late AMIA Jewish center prosecutor Alberto Nisman, has removed herself from a lawsuit that prompted an investigation into the death of her former husband.

Nisman and Arroyo Salgado have two daughters, Iara and Kala. The written statement that Arroyo Salgado presented to her colleague, Federal Judge Julian Ercolini, who is overseeing the investigation into Nisman’s death, mentions ongoing “threats.”

She made the decision out of the “need to guarantee the protection and safety of the family,” she wrote in her request on Friday to be dropped from the lawsuit.

In the role of plaintiff, Arroyo Salgado was able to read reports of the investigation, suggest new measures, present written requests to the judge, and offer testimony. With her removal from the lawsuit, Arroyo Salgado and her daughters will have no part in the investigation.

The remaining complainant is Nisman’s mother, Sara Garfunkel, who will continue in her active role.

Nisman’s body was found on January 18, 2015, hours before he was to present evidence to Argentine lawmakers that President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner covered up Iran’s role in the attack on the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires that left 85 dead and hundreds wounded.

— JTA