Following their prosecution as perpetrators of the aggravated kidnapping of priest Miguel Woodward on September 16, 1973, the retired officers are now in custody. The victim's sister, Patricia Woodward, described the resolution by magistrate Eliana Quezada as a "step forward."

The retired Navy officers, who were prosecuted this Friday as perpetrators of the aggravated kidnapping of priest Miguel Woodward, are now in the custody of the justice system. The case concerns crimes committed aboard the Esmeralda following the 1973 military coup.

Thirty-four years after his death and six years after the investigation was opened, Minister Eliana Quezada ordered the detention of retired Vice Admirals Guillermo Aldoney Hansen and Juan Mackay Barriga and retired Navy Captain Ricardo Riesco Cornejo, who were taken to the Marine Infantry Barracks in Viña del Mar.

Meanwhile, retired Vice Admirals Adolfo Walbaum Weiber and Sergio Barra Von Kretschman were placed under house arrest due to their advanced age, as both are over 80.

Meanwhile, retired First Lieutenant of the Medical Corps, Carlos Costa, prosecuted as an accomplice to aggravated kidnapping, took refuge in a clinic in the Fifth Region to avoid arrest.

The most emblematic victim of the case being investigated by the magistrate is priest Miguel Woodward, 42, who worked with the group Christians for Socialism and was detained by a naval patrol on September 16, 1973, for his social work in the Cerro Los Placeres in Valparaíso.

From there, he was taken to the Federico Santa María University, then to the Naval War Academy, and finally held prisoner on the training ship Esmeralda, which was used for that purpose.

Once there, he was subjected to torture along with other political prisoners, mistreatment that left him severely wounded. This situation forced his executioners to take him in agony to the Naval Hospital, where he eventually died.

Woodward's autopsy was signed by First Lieutenant Carlos Costa, who, in his capacity as a doctor, authorized the cause of death.

At the time of the 1973 military coup, Adolfo Walbaum Wieber was a Rear Admiral, Guillermo Aldoney Hansen and Sergio Barra Von Kretschmann were Navy Captains, and Juan Mackay Barriga and Ricardo Riesco Cornejo were Lieutenants.

Upon learning of the prosecution of the retired Navy officers, the sister of the priest and victim of the dictatorship, Patricia Woodward, expressed her satisfaction with the magistrate's resolution and described it as "a step forward."

"I am very happy with the news that the case of my brother Miguel Woodward has taken a very important step forward and that there are Navy personnel prosecuted who played a relevant role in the torture inflicted upon him in 1973. I hope this means that we are reaching the truth and justice for Miguel and for the victims of the Navy," she stated.

The prosecution of Admirals Walbaum and Aldoney is particularly significant given that, at the time, they were Chief of the I Naval Zone and Chief of Staff of the I Naval Zone, respectively.

This fact exposes the statements of successive Navy Commanders-in-Chief, including the current Admiral Rodolfo Codina: they claimed that responsibility for the crimes was individual, not institutional, and that, in any case, no high command had intervened in them.

The prosecuted individuals

Adolfo Walbaum Wieber: In addition to his naval position, he was the first Intendant of Valparaíso appointed by the military junta.

Guillermo Aldoney Hansen: After retiring from the Navy, he began a successful career in the business world. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Mutual de Seguros de Chile, an entity founded by the Chilean Navy, among whose other members is the current Commander-in-Chief of the Navy.

In 1982, he assumed the presidency of the powerful holding company Compañía de Aceros del Pacífico (CAP), then controlled by CORFO; a few years later, he managed to privatize it through a curious financial operation.

Closely linked to the Catholic hierarchy—which never demanded accountability for the death of Miguel Woodward—Guillermo Aldoney was appointed head of security for the Pope during his visit to Chile in 1986. His cousin Jaime disappeared after being detained by naval forces that were under his command.

Juan Mackay Barriga: He is the vice president of the council of retired admirals and generals of Valparaíso. In 1973, he allegedly attended torture sessions at the naval facilities in Valparaíso.

Sergio Barra Von Kretschmann: He was the head of naval intelligence in 1973 and later rose to become the second-in-command of the DINA. Captain Riesco worked under his orders.

Carlos Costa Canessa: While a doctor at the Naval Hospital, he issued a death certificate in the name of Miguel Woodward without seeing any corpse.

Source: lanacion.cl, April 18, 2008