The gunman, who tried to shoot Argentina Vice President Cristina Kirchner in the face, was formally charged with attempted manslaughter on Thursday, as was his girlfriend, court documents showed.
Fernando Sabag Montiel, 35, was caught in stunning video pointing a pistol at Kirchner at close range as she greeted supporters outside her home on September 1.
After Montiel’s gun failed to fire for reasons still unknown, he was overpowered and arrested, while his girlfriend Brenda Uliarte, 23, was arrested three days later.
The judge presiding over the case, Maria Capuchetti, brought charges of attempted aggravated manslaughter with premeditated intent against Sabag Montiel and Uliarte, who will remain in police custody, according to court documents seen by AFP.
Judge Capuchetti has yet to bring charges against two acquaintances of the couple – Agustina Diaz, 21, and Gabriel Carrizo, 27 – who were both arrested earlier this week.
Authorities had previously said there was evidence of “planning and prior agreement” between Montiel and Uliarte, although their motives have not yet been clearly established.
The investigation was mainly based on the analysis of the suspects’ social media accounts, computers and phones. They paid special attention to the fact that Kirchner’s supporters gathered near their house every evening.
This “was carefully studied by the two (defendants) to choose the right time for the attack,” Capuchetti said.
Although the couple has not proven politically radical, Montiel sported tattoos of neo-Nazi symbols.
Uliarte showed clear animosity towards Kirchner online, saying in a message, “I sent (someone) to kill Cristina.”
Kirchner, the 69-year-old former president, enjoys a loyal following among supporters of the centre-left Peronist movement.
But she is also unpopular with the political opposition and has been at the center of a heated corruption process since her tenure.
The day after the attack, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in several Argentine cities to show their support.
Kirchner spoke Thursday for the first time since the assassination, during a meeting in Argentina’s Senate with priests and nuns working in the slums around the capital.
“I feel like I’m alive thanks to God and the Virgin,” she said.
She also said that Pope Francis, himself Argentine, called her after the attack to express his support.
Argentina’s highly polarized politics have been the focus of debate since the attack, with politicians on both sides accusing each other of fomenting a “climate of hatred.”
