On December 24, 1973, Heriberto ROJAS PEÑA, 23 years old, was detained near his home in the city of Coronel by members of the Carabineros. The search conducted by his family members proved fruitless; he has been forcibly disappeared since that date.

Given that his detention has been verified, and taking into account that he did not make contact with his family during all this time, that he did not carry out any proceedings before State agencies, and that there is no record of his departure from the country, this Commission is convinced that the disappearance of Heriberto Rojas constitutes a grave violation of human rights for which State agents are responsible.

D.O.B. : 29-10-50, 23 years of age at the time of his detention Address : Calle Lota, Coronel Marital Status : Single, father of one child Occupation : Independent worker Repressive Status : No known political affiliation Date of Detention : December 24, 1973

REPRESSIVE SITUATION

Heriberto Rojas Peña, father of one child, independent worker, with no known political affiliation, was detained near his home on December 24 at 11:00 hours by two Carabineros from the unit belonging to the police station on Calle Lautaro in the city of Coronel, while he was accompanied by his six-year-old sister, Verónica.

At the police facility, his detention was denied. The following day, family members checked the entry log, in which his name did not appear.

In a sworn statement before a notary in 1990, his sister Yolanda Isabel declared:

"That same day, December 25, at 9:00 in the morning, a man whom we did not know appeared at our home and informed us that Heriberto was being held at the police station on Calle Lautaro in the city of Coronel.

He told us that he lived across from the mill in Coronel and that he had been detained on December 24 for public intoxication, having remained in the cell adjacent to the one where Heriberto was. The young man had given him his name and address and asked him to let us know that he was detained and that we should come to claim him, as well as bring him breakfast.

When the stranger was released, Heriberto remained detained in the cell. The witness heard them beating him for long hours.

With this information, we went to the police station again, bringing him breakfast, but his presence there was denied to us. I remember that my mother and I asked to check the cells, which was not permitted to us because, as they explained, there was a prohibition."

Heriberto Rojas Peña, at the time of his detention, was under a provisional release regime—since November 1973, in proceedings for theft—with no knowledge of the existence of any warrant against him, as his mother was able to verify at the Court of Coronel a few days after the detention.

A few months later, the victim's mother returned to the Court asking for more information. There, she was attended to by an official who indicated that Heriberto had sent a letter informing that he was being held on an island. The family has no record of this event and does not know the name of the person who provided that information.

JUDICIAL AND/OR ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS

In the case of the disappearance of Heriberto Rojas Peña, there are no recorded judicial actions. It is known, however, that his mother reported his disappearance to the Court that was prosecuting him for theft.

Source: Vicariate of Solidarity