On October 12, 1973, at the Pichoy Bridge in Valdivia, three of the following individuals were victims of political executions by Carabineros, while the fourth died as a result of the torture received:

José Manuel ARRIAGADA CORTES, 19 years old, newspaper vendor, member of the Communist Party;

José Gabriel ARRIAGADA ZUÑIGA, 30 years old, topographer, member of the Socialist Party;

José Manuel CARRASCO TORRES, accountant, member of the Communist Party;

Gilberto Antonio ORTEGA ALEGRIA, 39 years old, employee, union leader, member of the Socialist Party;

All of them were detained on October 10, 1973, by Carabineros from Malalhue and Lanco, and taken to the Malalhue police station, being subsequently transferred to the Lanco police station, where they remained until October 12, 1973.

At that facility, as a result of torture, Gilberto Antonio Ortega Alegría died in the presence of witnesses. A few hours later, the other three detainees and Ortega's body were removed from the station to be transported to Valdivia. José Gabriel Arriagada was tied to José Manuel Arriagada, and Carrasco to the body of Ortega.

Upon arriving at the Pichoy Bridge, the detainees were executed. All the bodies showed multiple bullet wounds. Their remains were handed over to their families for burial. Verbal accounts provided to the families by Carabineros authorities cited the detainees' alleged attempt to escape as the reason for their deaths, without providing further detailed explanations.

The Commission has formed the conviction that Gilberto Ortega died as a consequence of the torture applied to him by State agents, and that Manuel Arriagada, Gabriel Arriagada, and Manuel Carrasco were executed outside of any legal process, also by State agents, these acts constituting a violation of their human rights. This conviction is based on the following evidence:

– The victims were detained by Carabineros, with many witnesses to those arrests;

– The existence of eyewitnesses to the death of Gilberto Antonio Ortega Alegría, which occurred at the Lanco police station as a result of the torture to which he was subjected;

– The existence of witnesses who were detained alongside the victims before their deaths and their transfer to Valdivia, all of whom have testified before this Commission.