This Tuesday, the Temuco Court of Appeals confirmed that a retired Carabineros officer will remain deprived of liberty and prosecuted as the author of the qualified homicide of an accountant during the dictatorship period in the city of Gorbea.

Rosalina Vara, wife of the forcibly disappeared accountant, Domingo Obreque Obreque, accompanied by a daughter, listened to the arguments requesting the release of the former Carabineros officer, Hugo Cruz Castillo, who is prosecuted as the author of qualified homicide for the act that occurred during the dictatorship.

The lawyer, Sebastián Saavedra, pointed out the danger to society that the release of the former police official represents, since it has been proven that Obreque was beaten to death at the Gorbea station.

The lawyer, Armin Castillo, appealed to the higher court to obtain bail for Hugo Cruz Castillo, who, after leaving the ranks of the Carabineros, worked in real estate brokerage in Villarrica. The episodes of human rights violations carried out by Carabineros officials who served in the commune of Gorbea after the 1973 military coup have kept Fidel Freire Obando, Patricio Burgueño Robles, José Luis Guzmán Sandoval, and Hugo Omar Cruz Castillo deprived of liberty at the Second Police Station of Temuco.

Source: biobiochile.cl, August 6, 2013

5 retired Carabineros officers sentenced to 15 years in prison as authors of the qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque

Minister Álvaro Mesa sentenced 5 retired Carabineros officers to 15 years in prison as authors of the qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque. The minister on special assignment for human rights violation cases of the Courts of Appeals of Temuco, Valdivia, and Puerto Montt, Álvaro Mesa Latorre, sentenced 5 retired Carabineros officials to up to 15 years in prison for their responsibility as authors or accessories to the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque and for the crime of illegal coercion against Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones.

These crimes were perpetrated in Gorbea at the end of September 1973. The magistrate sentenced Hugo Omar Cruz Castillo and Carlos Alberto Alarcón Torres to 15 years in prison as authors of the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, perpetrated in Gorbea at the end of September 1973.

Furthermore, Patricio Horacio Burgeño Robles was sentenced to 15 years in prison as the author of the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque and to 541 days in prison as the author of the crime of illegal coercion against Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones.

Finally, José Luis Guzmán Sandoval must serve a sentence of 11 years in prison as the author of the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, and Gonzalo Enrique Arias González was sentenced to 5 years in prison, with the benefit of supervised release, as an accessory to the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque.

In the civil aspect, the minister ordered the State to pay the sum of $235,000,000 (two hundred and thirty-five million pesos) as compensation for damages, for moral injury resulting from the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, and in the case of the illegal coercion of Hilda Gana Mardones, the sum corresponds to $12,000,000 (twelve million pesos).

In the investigation, Minister Álvaro Mesa established: “A.- That after September 11, 1973, as a result of an order issued throughout the country for the armed and security institutions, the Gorbea Carabineros Station increased its staff, as lower units were withdrawn, and the uniformed officers had to sleep at the unit, as the order forced them to remain in a state of barracks confinement or grade 1.

As a result of the above, there was a separation of functions in said police unit, with the Lieutenant, Patricio Horacio Burgueño Robles, along with a group of his trusted men, dedicating themselves to detaining and interrogating people who had political ties or social relevance.

B.- That on September 28, 1973, a patrol from the Gorbea Carabineros Station, composed of Lieutenant Burgueño and Carabineros officer Carlos Alberto Alarcón Torres, went in the afternoon to the home of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, who was apprehended without a judicial warrant, which was carried out in the presence of his three minor children and his spouse, to be taken to the Gorbea Carabineros Station.

In order to verify that Domingo Obreque Obreque was admitted to the police unit, his spouse and the couple's eldest son, 12 years old, followed the police vehicle on bicycles, being able to observe Obreque's actual entry into that place.

C.- That at the Gorbea Carabineros Station, Domingo Obreque Obreque was taken directly to the stable area, being interrogated by Lieutenant Burgueño and Carabineros officers from his trusted group, among whom were Hugo Cruz Castillo, José Luis Guzmán Sandoval, and Fidel Freire Obando.

In addition, he was subjected to illegal coercion, consisting of punches to his face and abdomen, which were carried out by Lieutenant Burgueño and Carabineros officer Freire Obando. After a few minutes and as a result of the physical coercion received, Obreque Obreque died at the scene, for which the Officer notified the Commissioner of the Pitrufquén Carabineros Station, Sergio Callís, who arrived at the police unit, gave the order for the entire staff of the Station to be present, and ordered the body to be made to disappear.

For this reason, Lieutenant Burgueño, together with Carabineros officers José Luis Guzmán Sandoval and Fidel Freire Obando, were in charge of transporting the body to the Quepe River and throwing it into its waters.

D.- That the following day, and having no news of Domingo Obreque Obreque, his spouse went to the guard post of the Gorbea Carabineros Station, where she was informed that he was still being held, and she was not allowed to leave food or cleaning supplies.

Due to the above, Rosalina Varas Vergara went to the unit for three days in a row, always receiving the same answer. However, on the third day, at the station's guard post, Carabineros officer Hugo Cruz Castillo—who had provided her with the information the first time—indicated that a military patrol from a unit he did not know had come to pick up Domingo Obreque Obreque and that he had been taken to an unknown destination, so he suggested she go to the nearest military units and request information there.

What was stated by Cruz Castillo was the information that the station and precinct superiors ordered to be communicated to their subordinates, in order not to reveal the whereabouts and circumstances of the death of Domingo Obreque Obreque.

E.- That most of the members of the Gorbea Carabineros Station found out about everything mentioned above, since on one occasion, while they were having dinner at the unit, there was a verbal altercation over what happened to Obreque Obreque between Fidel Freire Obando and José Luis Guzmán Sandoval, participants in the event.

Furthermore, at a later date, due to the insistence of Obreque's spouse, the Sub-prefect of Carabineros of Cautín, Gonzalo Enrique Arias González, arrived at the Gorbea Carabineros Station, interrogating Lieutenant Burgueño about Obreque's whereabouts, with several of the uniformed officers who made up that staff and the complainant herself being present.

Subsequently, Arias González summoned Obreque's spouse to the Cautín Prefecture facilities, telling her not to continue searching for her husband, without giving her further explanations. F.- That following the line described in the last part of letter A of this consideration, in the month of September 1973, Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones, a teacher at school No. 6 in Gorbea, was detained on a public street by Gorbea Carabineros personnel and was transported in a vehicle to her home located in the same commune, with the purpose of carrying out a raid, as they accused her of keeping hidden weapons in that place. This was done under constant threats and insults toward the aforementioned teacher. G.- That upon not obtaining positive results in the raid carried out at the home of Hilda Gana Mardones, she was transported by the same arresting officers to the Gorbea Carabineros Station, being placed at the disposal of Patricio Horacio Burgueño Robles, who, in his office, interrogated her regarding her daily activities, her links to other detainees, and searched the belongings she was carrying at that moment, to immediately indicate to her that the reason for her apprehension was due to her political militancy. H.- That after carrying out the interrogation, Burgueño Robles ordered her to undress. The detainee resisted, at which moment the same official proceeded to remove her belongings, so she stopped resisting and began to do so herself. Being naked, the same Lieutenant took her to the guard post of the police facility, displaying the naked detainee to the officials who were in that place, while insulting and threatening her. Subsequently, she was taken to one of the cells, where she spent the night, and the next day she was released by order of the same Officer, who told her that she would continue to be watched,” the ruling points out.

Source: araucaniacuenta.cl, April 24, 2017

Former Villarrica Carabineros officer sentenced to 15 years in prison as author of qualified homicide

The minister on special assignment for human rights violation cases of the Courts of Appeals of Temuco, Valdivia, and Puerto Montt, Álvaro Mesa Latorre, sentenced five retired Carabineros officials to up to 15 years in prison for their responsibility as authors or accessories to the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque and for the crime of illegal coercion against Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones.

These crimes were perpetrated in Gorbea at the end of September 1973. The magistrate sentenced Hugo Omar Cruz Castillo, residing in Villarrica, and Carlos Alberto Alarcón Torres to 15 years in prison as authors of the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, perpetrated in Gorbea at the end of September 1973.

Furthermore, Patricio Horacio Burgeño Robles was sentenced to 15 years in prison as the author of the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque and to 541 days in prison as the author of the crime of illegal coercion against Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones.

Finally, José Luis Guzmán Sandoval must serve a sentence of 11 years in prison as the author of the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, and Gonzalo Enrique Arias González was sentenced to 5 years in prison, with the benefit of supervised release, as an accessory to the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque.

In the civil aspect, the minister ordered the State to pay the sum of $235,000,000 (two hundred and thirty-five million pesos) as compensation for damages, for moral injury resulting from the crime of qualified homicide of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, and in the case of the illegal coercion of Hilda Gana Mardones, the sum corresponds to $12,000,000 (twelve million pesos).

Source: redinformativa.cl, April 25, 2017

Punta Peuco: Inmate who requested presidential pardon died of cancer at the Carabineros Hospital

José Luis Guzmán Sandoval is the ninth person convicted for human rights-related cases to whom the measure was denied during the Piñera administration. This Saturday, retired Carabineros Sub-officer José Luis Guzmán Sandoval, who was serving a six-year sentence at the Punta Peuco facility for the homicide of Nicanor Moyano Valdés, perpetrated on November 10, 1973, died of cancer.

According to the prison inmates' defense attorney, Raúl Meza, Guzmán Sandoval had requested a pardon from President Sebastián Piñera after being informed of his terminal diagnosis. However, in Meza's words, said request was denied “without explanation of cause.” Thus, Guzmán became the ninth person convicted for human rights-related cases to whom the measure was denied during the Piñera administration.

For Meza, it is “morally unacceptable, the inhumane and inexcusable indifference that President Sebastián Piñera has had toward those inmates suffering from chronic and terminal illnesses, who have been deprived of the right to die with dignity alongside their loved ones.” According to the interactive site of the Museum of Memory, “on November 10, 1973, Nicanor MOYANO VALDES, 49, a merchant and member of the Socialist Party, went to the Gorbea Station in order to comply with the obligation imposed to sign in weekly.

From that day on, he never returned home. Subsequently, numerous people informed Moyano's relatives that they had seen his body in the Donguil River. However, his family's search was fruitless. To date, he has not been found.

Given his militancy, the frequency of these events in the period, and the other circumstances of his disappearance, this Commission can presume the responsibility of State agents in it.”

Source: theclinic.cl, April 21, 2019

Supreme Court sentences retired Carabineros officer for homicide at the Gorbea station in September 1973

In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court sentenced 4 retired members of the Carabineros for the qualified homicide of Domingo Obreque Obreque, which occurred at the end of September 1973 in the town of Gorbea, Araucanía region.

The highest court sentenced Hugo Cruz Castillo and Carlos Alarcón Torres to 10 years and one day in prison for their responsibility as authors of the homicide. Meanwhile, José Luis Guzmán Sandoval must serve a sentence of 5 years and one day in prison for his responsibility in the events.

In addition, Gonzalo Arias González was acquitted of his participation as an accessory to the events, as his responsibility could not be determined. Likewise, regarding Patricio Burgueño Robles, a unification of sentences was accepted, and he was sentenced to a single term of 15 years and one day in prison for the homicide of Obreque Obreque, the application of illegal coercion provided for in Article 150, No. 1a against Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones, and the qualified homicide of Nicanor Moyano Valdés.

The investigation by minister on special assignment Álvaro Mesa Latorre established that: A.- That after September 11, 1973, as a result of an order issued throughout the country for the armed and security institutions, the Gorbea Carabineros Station increased its staff, as lower units were withdrawn, and the uniformed officers had to sleep at the unit, as the order forced them to remain in a state of barracks confinement or grade 1.

As a result of the above, there was a separation of functions in said police unit, with the Lieutenant, Patricio Horacio Burgueño Robles, along with a group of his trusted men, dedicating themselves to detaining and interrogating people who had political ties or social relevance.

B.- That on September 28, 1973, a patrol from the Gorbea Carabineros Station, composed of Lieutenant Burgueño and Carabineros officer Carlos Alberto Alarcón Torres, went in the afternoon to the home of Domingo Antonio Obreque Obreque, who was apprehended without a judicial warrant, which was carried out in the presence of his three minor children and his spouse, to be taken to the Gorbea Carabineros Station.

In order to verify that Domingo Obreque Obreque was admitted to the police unit, his spouse and the couple's eldest son, 12 years old, followed the police vehicle on bicycles, being able to observe Obreque's actual entry into that place.

C.- That at the Gorbea Carabineros Station, Domingo Obreque Obreque was taken directly to the stable area, being interrogated by Lieutenant Burgueño and Carabineros officers from his trusted group, among whom were Hugo Cruz Castillo, José Luis Guzmán Sandoval, and Fidel Freire Obando.

In addition, he was subjected to illegal coercion, consisting of punches to his face and abdomen, which were carried out by Lieutenant Burgueño and Carabineros officer Freire Obando. After a few minutes and as a result of the physical coercion received, Obreque Obreque died at the scene, for which the Officer notified the Commissioner of the Pitrufquén Carabineros Station, Sergio Callís, who arrived at the police unit, gave the order for the entire staff of the Station to be present, and ordered the body to be made to disappear.

For this reason, Lieutenant Burgueño, together with Carabineros officers José Luis Guzmán Sandoval and Fidel Freire Obando, were in charge of transporting the body to the Quepe River and throwing it into its waters.

D.- That the following day, and having no news of Domingo Obreque Obreque, his spouse went to the guard post of the Gorbea Carabineros Station, where she was informed that he was still being held, and she was not allowed to leave food or cleaning supplies.

Due to the above, Rosalina Varas Vergara went to the unit for three days in a row, always receiving the same answer. However, on the third day, at the station's guard post, Carabineros officer Hugo Cruz Castillo—who had provided her with the information the first time—indicated that a military patrol from a unit he did not know had come to pick up Domingo Obreque Obreque and that he had been taken to an unknown destination, so he suggested she go to the nearest military units and request information there.

What was stated by Cruz Castillo was the information that the station and precinct superiors ordered to be communicated to their subordinates, in order not to reveal the whereabouts and circumstances of the death of Domingo Obreque Obreque.

E.- That most of the members of the Gorbea Carabineros Station found out about everything mentioned above, since on one occasion, while they were having dinner at the unit, there was a verbal altercation over what happened to Obreque Obreque between Fidel Freire Obando and José Luis Guzmán Sandoval, participants in the event.

Furthermore, at a later date, due to the insistence of Obreque's spouse, the Sub-prefect of Carabineros of Cautín, Gonzalo Enrique Arias González, arrived at the Gorbea Carabineros Station, interrogating Lieutenant Burgueño about Obreque's whereabouts, with several of the uniformed officers who made up that staff and the complainant herself being present.

Subsequently, Arias González summoned Obreque's spouse to the Cautín Prefecture facilities, telling her not to continue searching for her husband, without giving her further explanations. F.- That following the line described in the last part of letter A of this consideration, in the month of September 1973, Hilda Francisca Gana Mardones, a teacher at school No. 6 in Gorbea, was detained on a public street by Gorbea Carabineros personnel and was transported in a vehicle to her home located in the same commune, with the purpose of carrying out a raid, as they accused her of keeping hidden weapons in that place. This was done under constant threats and insults toward the aforementioned teacher. G.- That upon not obtaining positive results in the raid carried out at the home of Hilda Gana Mardones, she was transported by the same arresting officers to the Gorbea Carabineros Station, being placed at the disposal of Patricio Horacio Burgueño Robles, who, in his office, interrogated her regarding her daily activities, her links to other detainees, and searched the belongings she was carrying at that moment, to immediately indicate to her that the reason for her apprehension was due to her political militancy. H.- That after carrying out the interrogation, Burgueño Robles ordered her to undress. The detainee resisted, at which moment the same official proceeded to remove her belongings, so she stopped resisting and began to do so herself. Being naked, the same Lieutenant took her to the guard post of the police facility, displaying the naked detainee to the officials who were in that place, while insulting and threatening her. Subsequently, she was taken to one of the cells, where she spent the night, and the next day she was released by order of the same Officer, who told her that she would continue to be watched. In the civil aspect, the sentence ordering the State to pay a total compensation of $247,000,000 to the victim's family members was confirmed.

Source: diarioconstitucional.cl, October 23, 2019