José Walter Bassani Sacías is a retired Uruguayan military officer who has been the subject of an international arrest order in connection with a historical human-rights case dating to Uruguay's military dictatorship.
According to Uruguay's judicial records, prosecutors sought his prosecution for repeated offenses involving torture and serious deprivation of liberty, allegedly committed in his capacity as a co-perpetrator. The proceedings concern the 1978 abduction of political activists Universindo Rodríguez Díaz and Lilian Celiberti Rosas, as well as Celiberti's two young children, in Porto Alegre, Brazil.
The case is connected to Operation Condor, the South American state-security coordination system used by military dictatorships during the 1970s to pursue political opponents across national borders. The four victims were abducted in Brazil and subsequently transferred illegally to Uruguay, where the adults were subjected to further detention and interrogation.
Uruguayan judicial and human-rights records identify Bassani as one of the military personnel involved in the operation. According to historical documentation, he was then a major in the Uruguayan Army and participated in the detention operation alongside other members of the country's military intelligence apparatus. Brazilian security personnel were also involved in the operation.
In 2016, Uruguay's specialized prosecutor for crimes against humanity requested the prosecution and imprisonment of Bassani, Glauco José Yannone de León and Carlos Alberto Rossel Argimón for repeated offenses of torture and serious deprivation of liberty. The charges were based on provisions of Uruguay's Law 18.026 concerning crimes against humanity.
A 2022 judicial decision records that the prosecution maintained its request for the three former military officers. Bassani, however, did not appear before the court. On June 2, 2022, a Uruguayan judge ordered a national and international arrest warrant for him. Later records state that he remained at large.
The legal proceedings subsequently advanced against other defendants in the same case. In September 2025, Yannone and Rossel were convicted and sentenced to twelve years in prison for kidnapping and torture. Eduardo Ferro Bizzozero, another former military officer linked to the case, was also later processed in connection with the same events.
Bassani's case remains legally distinct from those convictions. The available judicial records indicate that he is wanted and was processed in connection with allegations of torture and unlawful deprivation of liberty, but he has not been convicted in the same proceedings described above.
The case involving Bassani is part of Uruguay's broader judicial effort to investigate human-rights violations committed during the country's dictatorship. Because the events occurred decades ago and involve alleged crimes against humanity, the proceedings have continued long after the end of military rule.
For historical and legal accuracy, Bassani should therefore be described as a former military officer wanted in connection with allegations of torture and unlawful detention, rather than as a person finally convicted of those offenses. His current legal status is based on the international arrest order and the judicial proceedings documented by Uruguayan authorities.
SOURCES
Uruguay Judicial Records — Sentencia 2053/2022, proceedings concerning Universindo Rodríguez Díaz and Lilian Celiberti Rosas. Poder Judicial / Plan Cóndor document
Sitios de Memoria Uruguay — Case concerning the kidnapping, detention and torture of Universindo Rodríguez, Lilian Celiberti and her children. Sitios de Memoria Uruguay
El País Uruguay — List of Uruguayans wanted by Interpol, including José Walter Bassani Sacías. El País Uruguay
Observatorio Luz Ibarburu — Judicial case records and international arrest order concerning Bassani Sacías. Observatorio Luz Ibarburu
Poder Judicial / Plan Cóndor — 2025 judgment concerning other defendants in the Celiberti case. Judicial judgment
