The Temuco Court of Appeals confirmed the sentence for the qualified kidnapping of former Radical deputy Luis Lobos Barrientos, which occurred after the military coup in the town of Pitrufquén, Araucanía Region.

In a unanimous ruling, justices Héctor Toro, Víctor Reyes, and Julio César Grandón ratified the verdict of justice Fernando Carreño, who on August 29 sentenced Gonzalo Arias González, Eduardo Riquelme Olivares, and Juan Fritiz Vega to eight years in prison.

This is the eleventh conviction issued by the Temuco Court of Appeals in a human rights violation case and the 13th since 2004. Lobos Barrientos was detained for the first time on September 13, 1973, by Carabineros officers from the Pitrufquén police station at his home.

He was taken directly to that police unit, from where he was transferred to Temuco, and from there to the Tucapel Regiment. On that occasion, the former military prosecutor Alfonso Podlech—currently imprisoned in Europe—authorized him to be taken to his home in Pitrufquén under house arrest.

He remained in that condition until October 5, the date on which Carabineros officials, under the command of then-lieutenant Carlos Moreno, appeared at his home, transferring him to the Second Police Station of Temuco and later, by order of Carabineros prosecutor Gonzalo Arias González, he was taken to the Public Jail of the regional capital.

He remained in that prison until October 11, the day he was taken to the Carabineros prosecutor's office, where he was granted unconditional release due to a lack of evidence. He was released at 7:40 PM, and the curfew began at 8:00 PM, meaning he had 20 minutes to reach Pitrufquén, located 30 kilometers from Temuco, without carrying money, documents, or a watch.

However, his release was merely an administrative formality, as witness accounts state that the victim was loaded onto a helicopter bound for an unknown destination.

Source: Friday, December 5, 2008 La Nación