II.- The appealed judgment of February 6, 2008, written on page 671 and following, is confirmed, with the declaration that Andrés de Jesús Morales Pereira is sentenced to five years of minor imprisonment in its maximum degree, with the accessory penalties of absolute perpetual disqualification for political rights and absolute disqualification for public offices and positions during the term of the sentence, plus the payment of court costs, for his participation as an author in the crime of qualified kidnapping of Reinaldo Salvador Poseck Pedreros, committed in Chillán on an undetermined date - between September 11 and 30, 1973. Given the criminal sanction imposed on the convicted Morales Pereira and meeting the requirements demanded by Article 15 of Law No. 18.216, he is granted the benefit of supervised release; therefore, he must remain subject to the surveillance and observation of the Community Treatment Section designated by the Gendarmería de Chile for the same duration as his sentence, and must also comply with the other requirements contemplated in Article 17 of the same law. If such benefit were to be revoked, the imposed sentence shall be counted from the time he presents himself or is apprehended, with credit given for the time he remained deprived of liberty during this proceeding, as recorded in the judgment under review.

Source: Judiciary May 2010

Lawsuit filed against high-ranking regional military commanders

A new lawsuit against Augusto Pinochet Ugarte has opened a new judicial front in Chillán regarding human rights violations. This is an action that seeks to sanction the regional commanders of the Armed Forces and police.

The action was filed by lawyer Hiram Villagra before the Court of Appeals of Chillán against the former dictator and a series of retired officers for the crimes of qualified kidnapping, illicit association, deprivation of liberty, and torture in the VIII Region.

In addition to General (Ret.) Pinochet, these illicit acts are charged against Carabineros Lieutenant (Ret.) Patricio Marabolí Orellana; the former Regiment Commander and Intendant of the Ñuble province, Guillermo Toro Dávila; Army Captain (Ret.) and prosecutor Mario Romero Godoy; and Army Lieutenant and head of the Military Intelligence Service (SIM) Andrés Morales Pereira, along with twelve other former uniformed personnel.

Villagra maintained that the relevance of the judicial action lies in the fact that “until now, judicial reproach has been concentrated on Pinochet and the DINA leadership, without important operational agents being held accountable.

We are in a new stage where civilians and local leaderships will have to answer.” To carry out the persecution of opponents in the Biobío Region, the uniformed personnel counted on the collaboration of civilians such as Alex Etchevers, a militant of the Patria y Libertad movement.

The professional pointed out that Lieutenant Marabolí was “the spearhead of the repressive acts in the area, being ‘rewarded’ by the high command by being promoted to general.” The lawsuit maintains that there was coordination between the branches in the neutralization of the regional opposition.

The detainees were transferred from various police stations to the No. 9 Mountain Infantry Regiment of Chillán, where they were interrogated under torture. There were political executions, after which police personnel transported the bodies to the Ñuble bridge, throwing them into the river.

On September 16, 1973, several Carabineros entered the Regiment and revealed how, after raiding the home of the mayor of Chillán, Ricardo Lagos Reyes (PS), they murdered him along with his family.

Source: July 1, 2006 La Nación