Young femicide victim buried after 72 days in ICU

Puerto Plata. – Amidst tears, pain, and displays of deep consternation, family members and community members buried Mercedes Martínez, a young victim of femicide who died after spending 72 days in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Ricardo Limardo Provincial Hospital. The burial took place in the Sabaneta de Yásica cemetery, after the young woman failed to overcome the serious injuries caused during an attack that occurred on October 14, in the Villa Islabón community, allegedly at the hands of her common-law husband. According to information provided by communicator Wellington De Jesús Martínez, Mercedes Martínez was attacked by her partner Francis Pierret, who allegedly acted for sentimental reasons. After the incident, the aggressor was arrested days later and a court in Puerto Plata imposed pre-trial detention as a coercive measure while the judicial process advances.

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The young woman’s death has generated deep shock in Villa Islabón, a community located between the municipal districts of Cabarete and Sabaneta de Yásica, belonging to the municipality of Sosúa, in the eastern part of Puerto Plata. Local residents expressed their outrage and pain at this new case of gender violence, while demanding greater prevention and protection actions for women, in order to prevent tragedies like this from continuing to mourn Dominican families.