On September 17, 1973, José Secundino Zúñiga Aceldine, married, 6 children, agricultural worker, along with his brother José Rafael Zúñiga Aceldine, presented themselves at 17:00 hours at the Santa Bárbara Carabineros Station, accompanied by their wives, as they had been summoned to testify alongside the farmer Gilberto Araneda Riquelme through a local peasant named Juan Albornoz Lagos, to whom a police officer from the aforementioned unit had sent a note instructing the affected individuals to appear as soon as possible.

That afternoon, after remaining at the police facility for more than two hours, the three aforementioned peasants were held as detainees, which was communicated to the wives of the Zúñiga brothers by one of the Carabineros of the unit. Among the police officers present were Second Sergeant José Flores Albornoz and the unit chief, Lieutenant Plante Euclides Aravena Sáez.

María González Quezada, spouse of José Zúñiga, and Jova Beroíza Faúndez, spouse of José Rafael, went to the police station on the morning of September 18, where they were informed that the men had been transferred along with other detainees to the Los Angeles Regiment.

From then on, they visited various detention centers in the area, including the military facility, without obtaining information on the whereabouts or status of their husbands, who remain, to this date, as forcibly disappeared, as does José Gilberto Araneda Riquelme.

JUDICIAL AND/OR ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS

On July 4, 1977, a Writ of Amparo (Habeas Corpus) was filed for the Zúñiga brothers, case file 4.010, before the Court of Appeals of Concepción. After receiving a report from the Ministry of the Interior dated July 27, 1977, denying having any records of the individuals in question based on inquiries made to the authorities of Los Angeles and the Carabineros of Santa Bárbara, the Court rejected the amparo on July 28, 1977.

The rejection was based on the claim that the affected individuals "have not been detained, nor has any resolution been issued affecting them by government authorities, as reported by the Minister of the Interior," ordering the initiation of a summary proceeding for alleged disappearance at the Criminal Court on duty in the city of Los Angeles.

On August 16, 1977, the Second Criminal Court of Los Angeles initiated case file 18.635 regarding the alleged disappearance of the Zúñiga Aceldine brothers.

Under the Judge's instructions, the Investigations Police (Investigaciones) of Los Angeles investigated the reported facts, interviewing the spouses of the affected individuals among other investigative steps.

The farmer Juan Albornoz Lagos appeared before the Judge on September 23, 1977.

On January 12, 1978, Second Sergeant José Flores Albornoz appeared, claiming he did not remember the detention of the affected individuals because there were many detainees held for preventive reasons, and therefore they were released the same day.

On January 18, 1978, the summary proceeding was declared closed, and given that there was insufficient evidence to prove the existence of a crime, the case was temporarily dismissed. However, on February 14, 1978, the Court of Appeals of Concepción, upon receiving the ruling for review, resolved to suspend the effects of the decision, returning the case to the summary stage as the investigation was incomplete, and decreed a series of further investigative steps.

Once again, after receiving reports and statements from persons linked to the case, the judge declared the summary closed on June 7, 1978, and permanently dismissed the case by virtue of the recently enacted Amnesty Law (D.L. 2.191) and the provisions of Article 408 No. 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Upon review by the Court of Appeals of Concepción, the court confirmed the ruling on June 26, 1978, but revoked the resolution of the Second Criminal Court of Los Angeles by substituting the aforementioned article with Article 409 No. 1, on the grounds that the commission of a crime had not been fully justified; therefore, the case remained temporarily dismissed.

It is necessary to point out that the judge presiding over the summary proceeding at no time summoned Lieutenant Plante Aravena Sáez, the Chief of the police unit where the affected individuals were detained and subsequently disappeared, to testify.

The visiting minister of the Court of Appeals of Concepción issued a first-instance sentence in the investigation into the kidnappings of 29 people that occurred in the towns of Quilaco and Santa Bárbara, Bío Bío Region, between September and November 1973.

The magistrate issued convictions against the individuals who participated in the aggravated kidnappings of José Rafael Zúñiga Aceldini, José Secundino Zúñiga Aceldini, José Gilberto Araneda, Juan de Dios Rubio Llancao, Julio Rubio Llancao, José María Tranamil Pereira, José Guillermo Purrán Treca, José Domingo Godoy Acuña, Julio César Godoy Godoy, Desiderio Aguilera Solís, José Nazario Godoy Acuña, Manuel Salamanca Mella, José Mariano Godoy Acuña, Miguel Cuevas Pincheira, Juan de Dios Fuentes Lizama, Juan Francisco Fuentes Lizama, Elba Burgos Sáez, Sebastián Hernaldo Campos Díaz, Aliro Oporto Durán, Sergio D’Apollonio Petermann (all of which occurred in Santa Bárbara); and of Cristino Humberto Cid Fuentealba, José Félido Pinto, Luis Alberto Cid, Luis Alberto Bastas Sandoval, Raimundo Salazar Muñoz, Gabriel José Viveros Flores, Segundo Marcial Soto Quejón, and José Roberto Molina Quezada (which occurred in Quilaco). The individuals sentenced for the Santa Bárbara kidnappings are:

• Planté Euclide Aravena Sáez: 10 years and 1 day. No benefits.
• Héctor Isaías Echeverría Beltrán: 7 and a half years. No benefits.
• José Jaime Godoy Godoy: 7 years. No benefits.
• José Heraldo Pulgar Riquelme: 7 years. No benefits.
• Jorge Denis Domínguez Larenas: 6 and a half years. No benefits.
• Sergio Amado Fuentes Valenzuela: 6 and a half years. No benefits.
• Jorge Eduardo Valdivia Dames: 6 and a half years. No benefits.
• José Roberto Valdivia Dames: 6 and a half years. No benefits.
• Luis Enrique Ricardo Barrrueto Barting: 6 and a half years. No benefits.
• Manuel Dario Barrueto Barting: 6 and a half years. No benefits.
• Pedro Segundo Ruiz Pardo: 541 days. Conditional remission granted.

Meanwhile, those convicted for the Quilaco kidnappings are:

• Eugenio Villa Urrutia: 7 years. No benefits.
• José Eleodoro Burgos Sandoval: 7 years. No benefits.
• Juan Carlos Burgos Belauzarán: 7 years. No benefits.
• Carlos Santiago Sepúlveda Rivera: 7 years. No benefits.
• José Feliciano Gutiérrez Ortiz: 7 years. No benefits.
• Exequiel del Carmen Celedón Barrera: 7 years. No benefits.

Likewise, the civil lawsuit filed against the State was accepted, determining that $60,000,000 (sixty million pesos) must be paid to Gretel del Carmen Godoy Acuña for the kidnapping of her brother Sebastián Campos Díaz; $80,000,000 (eighty million pesos) to Jacinta Godoy Acuña for the kidnapping of her spouse Manuel Salamanca Mella, and $15,000,000 (fifteen million pesos) for the kidnapping of her brothers José Domingo, José Nazario, and José Mariano Godoy Acuña; $70,000,000 (seventy million pesos) to Ana María D’Apollonio Zapata for the kidnapping of her father Sergio D’Apollonio Petermann; $70,000,000 (seventy million pesos) to Ana María Zúñiga Beroiza for the kidnapping of her father José Zúñiga Aceldini, and $10,000,000 (ten million pesos) for the kidnapping of her uncle José Secundino Zuñiga Aceldini.

Additionally, the convicted individuals must jointly pay $80,000,000 (eighty million pesos) to Norma Panes Panes (spouse of Miguel Cuevas Pincheira), and $40,000,000 (forty million pesos) to Maritza Pilar, Fabiola del Carmen, Víctor Hugo, Dorian Inés, and Miguel Ángel Cuevas Panes (children of Miguel Cuevas Pincheira), as this family group did not file an action against the State.

Source: mqh.blogia.com 06/15/2011

Date: 06-15-2011

A completely irregular situation is occurring in the commune of Curacautín, in La Araucanía, specifically at the Collico school, where the municipality retains a criminal convicted of crimes against humanity as director.

This individual is Juan Carlos Burgos Belauzarán, a civilian convicted for his participation in the disappearance of 28 peasants in Santa Bárbara and Quilaco, in the foothills of the Bío Bío, between September and December 1973.

Juan Carlos Burgos Belauzarán is the name of the criminal convicted of crimes against humanity who works as the teacher in charge of the Collico rural school in Curacautín. The offender was convicted, along with four Carabineros and nine civilians, as the perpetrator of the kidnapping and disappearance of 28 peasants in Quilaco and Santa Bárbara, in what constitutes one of the most brutal crimes of the dictatorship.

Burgos Belauzarán was sentenced to four years of major imprisonment in its minimum degree, with accessory penalties of absolute perpetual disqualification for public offices and political rights, and absolute disqualification for professional titles for the duration of the sentence, but he currently appears as the teacher in charge of the Collico rural school, with a salary of more than $2 million.

He has held the position since at least 2016.

Due to the gravity of this situation, not only because of its illegality but because of what a conviction for crimes against humanity entails, the DAEM (Municipal Education Administration Department) of Curacautín and the Regional Ministerial Secretariat (Seremi) of Education in La Araucanía were contacted; both avoided assuming responsibility and announced that the situation is in the hands of a legal team "to reach a resolution."

From the municipal education department, they indicated that "the Supreme Court has not yet informed us, and in the current collection of background information, the disqualification appeared, and that is why the information was sent to the lawyers. I had no idea; I have been in the position for almost a year and I am not from Curacautín."

Patricio Aguilera, director of the DAEM, noted that this rural school is currently in recess, but Juan Carlos Burgos Belauzarán appears to be earning a salary, as of March 2023, of more than $2 million.

In this regard, Aguilera replied that "he is on medical leave, and the leave is paid by the Isapre (health insurance). We have now sent the background information to the legal advisors when we received the certificate of disqualification; we immediately referred it to our lawyers."

When asked why a human rights violator remains in charge of a school, the Seremi of Education of La Araucanía, María Isabel Mariñanco, deferred responsibility to the school operator, avoiding any mention of possible measures.

"In the administrative sphere of school management, personnel hiring is the responsibility of the operator, which in this case corresponds to the municipality. As the Ministry of Education, we call on municipalities and the local public education service, in their capacity as operators, to provide greater rigor to the processes of reviewing the backgrounds of those who work in educational establishments."

For now, the criminal convicted of crimes against humanity, Juan Carlos Burgos Belauzarán, is on medical leave, and according to the DAEM, they are "waiting" for the legal team's review to finalize his dismissal; for the time being, he continues to appear as the teacher in charge of the Collico school.

Below, we describe the events in which Burgos Belauzarán participated directly as a perpetrator, committed in Santa Bárbara and Quilaco between September and December 1973:

The judicial investigation details the various criminal episodes carried out by the uniformed officers and civilian executors of true extermination raids.

Thus, on September 13, 1973, a group of civilians and Carabineros, all armed with firearms and traveling in motor vehicles, arrived at the home of Cristino Humberto Cid Fuentealba, located on the El Rodal plot on the outskirts of Quilaco, proceeding to detain him in the presence of his relatives, and then taking him away on foot to an unknown destination, making him disappear to this day.

On September 14, 1973, Juan de Dios Fuentes Lizama and Juan Francisco Fuentes Lizama were kidnapped from their home located in a hut on the Corcovado estate, on the road to Villacura, in the commune of Santa Bárbara, by Carabineros and civilians, and their fate remains unknown to this day.

On September 16, 1973, Juan de Dios Rubio Llancao and Julio Alberto Rubio Llancao were detained and taken to the Santa Bárbara Carabineros Station, under the charge of the unit chief, the then-lieutenant Planté Aravena Sáez.

That same day, Guillermo Purrán Treca went to the indicated police unit seeking protection because he could not return home, as he had missed the bus and the curfew was approaching, but he was held there as a detainee.

At night, these three peasants, plus José María Tranamil Pereira, who had also been detained, were taken out of the police facility and transported to the Quilaco bridge, where the Carabineros riddled them with bullets; since that date, no news has been heard about the four peasants.

On September 16, 1973, Sebastián Hernaldo Campos Díaz voluntarily presented himself at the Santa Bárbara Carabineros Station, as he had been summoned previously, and was detained; his whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

At noon on September 17, 1973, Elba Burgos Sáez was detained by Carabineros on a public street in the city of Santa Bárbara, was put into a pickup truck, and taken to an unknown destination; since that date, no news of her whereabouts or existence has been known.

On the afternoon of September 17, 1973, José Rafael Zúñiga Aceldine, José Secundino Zúñiga Aceldine, and José Gilberto Araneda Riquelme voluntarily went to the Santa Bárbara Carabineros Station, complying with a summons that Carabineros of the aforementioned unit had made through a third party, and were entered into said facility as detainees; since that date, no news of their whereabouts or fate has been known.

In the commune of Quilaco, in the early hours of September 20, 1973, a group of Carabineros and civilians arrived at the home of José Felidor Pinto Pinto, a leader of the Campo Lindo peasant settlement located on the old Huinquén estate, whom they detained, taking him from his house to an unknown destination in vehicles, from which moment no further news of his fate was ever heard, his trail disappearing to this day.

In the morning hours of September 20, 1973, in the commune of Santa Bárbara, the group of executioners arrived at the 'El Huachi' estate, located 8 kilometers from that commune, and detained José Domingo Godoy Acuña, Julio César Godoy Godoy, and Desiderio Aguilera Solís, transporting them to the Santa Bárbara Carabineros Station, from where they were taken out at night to an unknown destination, and they have not been seen again nor has any news of their whereabouts been heard to this day.

Around noon that day, the same group went to the Loncopangue village and also to the vicinity of the Rañiguel estate in the same sector, proceeding to detain Luis Alberto Cid Cid, Luis Bastías Sandoval, and Raimundo Salazar Muñoz, who were loaded onto a Quilaco Municipality truck driven by José Feliciano Gutiérrez Ortiz, known as 'El Chamo', and then taken along the public road leading to Quilaco to a path that leads to the confluence of the Bío Bío and Quilmes rivers, where they were taken off the vehicle and, guarded by their captors, were led on foot to the banks of the indicated watercourses, at which moment their captors allegedly fired at them with firearms, their bodies falling into the channel of the aforementioned rivers, their actual whereabouts remaining unknown to this day. Also that same day, in the afternoon, the local resident Segundo Marcial Soto Quijón was detained in Quilaco by a group made up of Carabineros and civilians, from which date they made him disappear.

In the commune of Santa Bárbara, at approximately 14:00 hours on the same day, September 20, the criminal group detained José Nazario Godoy Acuña in the Los Junquillos sector, who was subsequently transported to the Santa Bárbara Carabineros Station.

Around 22:30 hours on September 20, 1973, in the commune of Santa Bárbara, they arrived at the home of Manuel Salamanca Mella, located on Avenida La Feria without number in Santa Bárbara, where they detained him in the presence of his relatives, and then took him to the Carabineros Station.

On the same date, the same group went to the boarding house located at Calle Rosas No. 343 in the commune of Santa Bárbara, where they detained José Mariano Godoy Acuña, who was transported to the Station where they were seen for the last time, and they have not been seen again nor has any news of their whereabouts been heard to this day.

On the night of September 20, 1973, the same armed group of Carabineros and civilians arrived at the home of Miguel Cuevas Pincheira, located at Calle Rosas No. 371 in Santa Bárbara, and detained him in the presence of his relatives, spouse, and children, taking him from his house and transporting him to an unknown location, and he has not been seen again nor has any news of his whereabouts been heard to this day.

On September 23, 1973, in the early morning hours, the group of executioners broke into the La Palma smallholding in the commune of Santa Bárbara to kidnap the peasants Sergio D’Apollonio Petermann, 48 years old, and his son Carlos Jacinto D’Apollonio Zapata, 22 years old, from their home.

They transported Carlos Jacinto to the bridge that connects the communes of Santa Bárbara and Quilaco, over the Bío Bío River, where they placed him on one of the railings and fired at him with firearms, causing him to fall into the riverbed.

However, the current dragged his body to one of the banks, where his body was found by relatives and acquaintances on the morning of the following day. They took the corpse to their home and proceeded to hold a wake to then bury him, but in the afternoon of that day, the same individuals who had kidnapped him the night before broke in to steal the young man's body and took it away to make it disappear to the present day.

On the morning of November 3, 1973, at approximately 11:00 hrs., the group of Carabineros and civilians arrived at Plot No. 112 in the Piñiquihue sector of the commune of Quilaco, where they detained José Roberto Molina Quezada, took him from his house, and took him away in a vehicle to an unknown destination, from which moment no news or knowledge of his whereabouts was ever heard again.

On the night of Saturday, November 3, they arrived at the home of Gabriel José Viveros Flores, located on the outskirts of Loncopangue, proceeding to detain him in the presence of his relatives, taking him from his house and taking him away to an unknown destination.

Around 16:00 hours on November 7, 1973, while Aliro Segundo Oporto Durán, 17 years old, was in a house located in the Raleo sector of the town of Alto Bío Bío, Carabineros personnel arrived to detain him, but the young man ran in the direction of the Bío Bío River, being pursued by the police, one of whom shot him, managing to apprehend him, from which moment all news of his whereabouts or existence is unknown.

by Juan Contreras Jara

Source: resumen.cl, May 10, 2023

Date: 05-10-2023

Court of Appeals of Concepción issued conviction for dictatorship crimes in Santa Bárbara and Quilaco

The visiting minister of the Court of Appeals of Concepción, Raquel Lermanda, issued a first-instance sentence in the investigation into the kidnappings of 29 people that occurred in the towns of Quilaco and Santa Bárbara, Bío Bío Region, between September and November 1973.

The magistrate issued convictions against the individuals who participated in the aggravated kidnappings of José Rafael Zúñiga Aceldini, José Secundino Zúñiga Aceldini, José Gilberto Araneda, Juan de Dios Rubio Llancao, Julio Rubio Llancao, José María Tranamil Pereira, José Guillermo Purrán Treca, José Domingo Godoy Acuña, Julio César Godoy Godoy, Desiderio Aguilera Solís, José Nazario Godoy Acuña, Manuel Salamanca Mella, José Mariano Godoy Acuña, Miguel Cuevas Pincheira, Juan de Dios Fuentes Lizama, Juan Francisco Fuentes Lizama, Elba Burgos Sáez, Sebastián Hernaldo Campos Díaz, Aliro Oporto Durán, Sergio D’Apollonio Petermann (all of which occurred in Santa Bárbara); and of Cristino Humberto Cid Fuentealba, José Félido Pinto, Luis Alberto Cid, Luis Alberto Bastas Sandoval, Raimundo Salazar Muñoz, Gabriel José Viveros Flores, Segundo Marcial Soto Quejón, and José Roberto Molina Quezada (which occurred in Quilaco).

The determined sentences are as follows:

Planté Aravena Saez: 14 years.

José Jaime Godoy Godoy: 11 years. Héctor Isaías Echeverría Beltrán: 11 years. Jorge Domínguez Larenas: 10 years and one day. José Heraldo Pulgar Riquelme: 11 years. Sergio Amado Fuentes Valenzuela: 10 years and one day.

Jorge Eduardo Valdivia Dames: 10 years and one day. José Roberto Valdivia Dames: 10 years and one day. Luis Enrique Ricardo Antonio Barrueto Bartnning: 10 years and one day. Manuel Darío Barrueto Bartnning: 10 years and one day.

José Segundo Ruiz Prado: 5 years and one day of imprisonment. Eugenio Villa Urrutia: 10 years and one day. José Eleodoro Burgos Sandoval: 12 years. Juan Carlos Burgos Belauzarán: 10 years and one day. Carlos Antonio Sepúlveda Rivera: 11 years. José Feliciano Gutiérrez Ortiz: 10 years and one day. Exequiel del Carmen Celedón Rivera: 10 years and one day. Sergio Alejandro Pino Cabeza: Acquitted.

In the civil aspect, the filed lawsuits were accepted, determining that the State must pay various sums to the victims' relatives for the moral damage caused by the kidnapping of their family members.

Additionally, the convicted individuals must assume payment for various amounts for the same act.

It should be mentioned that in 2011, Minister Carlos Aldana had issued a conviction for the same events; however, the sentence was annulled by the Court of Appeals of Concepción, so Minister Lermanda assumed the case as a non-disqualified minister.

Source: angelino.cl 05/10/2013

Date: 05-10-2013