The former officers Luis Aguilera Ortíz and Iván Sanhueza Torres are under investigation for the death of Manuel Ramírez Zurita inside the Renaico police station. The two retired Carabineros have been placed in preventive detention.

The minister for extraordinary human rights cases of the Temuco Court of Appeals, Álvaro Mesa, issued an indictment against two former Carabineros for unlawful coercion resulting in the death of Manuel Ramírez Zurita, perpetrated in the commune of Renaico in February 1987.

The individuals are retired Carabineros Luis Diber Aguilera Ortíz and Iván Humberto Sanhueza Torres, who were indicted and placed in preventive detention for their responsibility in the crime of unlawful coercion against Manuel Ramírez, who, while detained at the police facility and under their custody, died by hanging inside his cell.

According to the evidence gathered in the investigation, the magistrate determined that "after being detained, Manuel Ramírez was taken to the commune's police station. There, he was beaten and submerged in a drum of water.

This act was heard by the other detainees, who heard the sound of the water and the cries of Ramírez Zurita." The investigation adds that "around 12:00, the unit's lieutenant proceeded to conduct an exterior patrol of the station, noticing that a red cloth was hanging from one of the bars on the cell windows.

He immediately entered the barracks, realizing that Ramírez Zurita had committed suicide, using the shirt he was wearing when he was detained. Finally, according to the autopsy protocol and the statement of the forensic doctor, Ramírez Zurita presented blood infiltrations on the inner side of the scalp and abrasions in the right scapular and left external malleolar regions, which were explained by the action of third parties, whether caused by blows with a blunt object, such as a baton or hose."

Source: soychile.cl, September 17, 2014

Minister Mesa charges retired Carabineros for unlawful coercion of Manuel Ramírez Zurita at Renaico police station

The minister for extraordinary human rights cases of the Temuco Court of Appeals, Álvaro Mesa Latorre, charged the retired Carabineros: Baltazar Segundo Echeverría Ortega, Juan Angel Gajardo Morales, Luis Diber Aguilera Ortíz, and Iván Humberto Sanhueza Torres, as authors of the crime of unlawful coercion against Manuel Marcelino Ramírez Zurita, perpetrated in the commune of Renaico in the month of February 1987.

In the investigation stage (Case File 63.535), Minister Mesa established the following facts: A.- That on February 18, 1987, around 06:00, in the commune of Renaico, Manuel Marcelino Ramírez Zurita was detained on a public street by Carabineros personnel from that locality, as he was in a state of intoxication along with three other people, all of whom were taken to the commune's Carabineros station.

B.- That at the police unit's guardroom, the detainees were asked for their identities, and upon Ramírez Zurita's refusal, he was struck in the chest by a police officer. Then, the detainees were placed in the same cell at that facility.

After a few minutes, and due to his anxiety about going to work, Ramírez Zurita began calling out to the police officers who were on duty at that time, banging on the cell doors to be heard. A few minutes later, two Carabineros arrived—one of them Luis Aguilera Ortiz—who, by order of the sergeant in charge of the station at that hour, Baltazar Echeverría Ortega, proceeded to remove Ramírez Zurita from the cell, taking him to a section of the police facility where Carabineros Luis Diber Aguilera Ortiz and Juan Ángel Gajardo Morales proceeded to wet him with a hose; when that was not enough, they held him tightly by the arms and tried to submerge him in a drum of water. However, this maneuver was not possible due to the resistance offered by the detainee, at which point Iván Sanhueza Torres—by order of the sergeant in charge of the police facility—proceeded to assist, pushing the detainee's head into the water. The mistreatment suffered by Manuel Ramírez Zurita was heard by the other detainees, and some of them even observed what happened to him. C.- That after a few minutes, Ramírez Zurita was taken back to the cells, but placed in one adjacent to the one he had initially occupied, where there were no other detainees. Prior to this, the police officers who had previously removed him from the cell and submerged him in water opened the door of the cell where the other detainees were and showed them the state of Ramírez Zurita; his cellmates were able to observe that his clothing and his entire upper body were wet and that he was crying. Subsequently, the detainees heard how Ramírez Zurita, alone in the cell, cried and stated that they had mistreated and injured him. D.- That around 12:00 on the same day, the unit's lieutenant proceeded to conduct an exterior patrol of the station, noticing that a red cloth was hanging from one of the bars on the cell windows. He immediately entered the barracks, observing that Ramírez Zurita had committed suicide, using the shirt he was wearing when he was detained. E.- That finally, according to the autopsy protocol and the statement of the forensic doctor, Ramírez Zurita presented blood infiltrations on the inner side of the scalp and abrasions in the right scapular and left external malleolar regions, which were explained by the action of third parties, whether caused by blows with a blunt object, such as a baton or hose. Minister Álvaro Mesa Latorre was appointed as an instructor for human rights cases on September 27, 2011. Upon assuming the position, he received 41 cases in the summary stage. He currently oversees 106 cases, and in 25 of them, he has issued indictments, totaling 80 indictments. Additionally, there are 89 cases in the summary stage, 11 in the plenary stage, and 11 have been ruled upon. Of the latter, all sentences have been convictions, with 5 of them finalized. On the other hand, 6 have been temporarily dismissed, 2 were definitively dismissed, and he has declared himself incompetent in 2. To date, there are 120 people under prosecution and 45 accused. In his investigative work, the instructor minister of the Temuco Court of Appeals is assisted by 5 judicial clerks and 8 detectives from the Human Rights Crimes Investigation Brigade of the Chilean Investigative Police.

Source: araucaniacuenta.cl, July 30, 2016

Minister Álvaro Mesa convicted four retired Carabineros as authors of the torture of Manuel Ramírez Zurita in Renaico.

The Minister sentenced the retired Carabineros officers Baltazar Segundo Echeverría Ortega, Juan Ángel Gajardo Morales, Luis Diber Aguilera Ortíz, and Iván Humberto Sanhueza Torres to three years in prison.

The minister for extraordinary human rights cases of the Courts of Appeals of Temuco, Valdivia, Puerto Montt, and Coyhaique, Álvaro Mesa Latorre, sentenced the retired Carabineros officers Baltazar Segundo Echeverría Ortega, Juan Ángel Gajardo Morales, Luis Diber Aguilera Ortíz, and Iván Humberto Sanhueza Torres to three years in prison as authors of the crime of torture against Manuel Marcelino Ramírez Zurita, an illicit act perpetrated in the commune of Renaico on January 18, 1987.

In the case (File number 63.535), the instructor minister granted the four convicted individuals the benefit of conditional remission of the sentence for a period of three years and sentenced them to the suspension of public offices or positions during the time of the sentence and the payment of court costs.

Regarding the civil action, the instructor minister upheld, with costs, the civil lawsuit filed by the defense of Manuel Ramírez, ordering the State to pay the victim's family a total of $45,000,000 (forty-five million pesos) as compensation for damages, specifically for moral injury.

In the investigation, Minister Álvaro Mesa established that: A.- That on January 18, 1987, around 06:00, in the commune of Renaico, Manuel Marcelino Ramírez Zurita was detained on a public street by Carabineros personnel from that locality, as he was in a state of intoxication along with three other people, all of whom were taken to the commune's Carabineros station.

B.- That in the guardroom of the police unit, the detainees were asked for their identities, and upon Ramírez Zurita's refusal, he was struck in the chest by a police officer. Then, the detainees were placed in the same cell at that facility.

After a few minutes, and due to his anxiety about going to work, Ramírez Zurita began calling out to the police officers who were on duty at that time, banging on the cell doors to be heard. A few minutes later, two Carabineros arrived—one of them Luis Aguilera Ortíz—who, by order of the sergeant in charge of the station at that hour, Baltazar Echeverría Ortega, proceeded to remove Ramírez Zurita from the cell, taking him to a section of the police facility where Carabineros Luis Diber Aguilera Ortíz and Juan Ángel Gajardo Morales proceeded to wet him with a hose; when that was not enough, they held him tightly by the arms and tried to submerge him in a drum of water. However, this maneuver was not possible due to the resistance offered by the detainee, at which point Iván Sanhueza Torres—by order of the sergeant in charge of the police facility—proceeded to assist, pushing the detainee's head into the water. The mistreatment suffered by Manuel Ramírez Zurita was heard by the other detainees, and some of them even observed what happened to him. C.- That after a few minutes, Ramírez Zurita was taken back to the cells, but placed in one adjacent to the one he had initially occupied, where there were no other detainees. Prior to this, the police officers who had previously removed him from the cell and submerged him in water opened the door of the cell where the other detainees were and showed them the state of Ramírez Zurita; his cellmates were able to observe that his clothing and his entire upper body were wet and that he was crying. Subsequently, the detainees heard how Ramírez Zurita, alone in the cell, cried and stated that they had mistreated and injured him. D.- That around 12:00 on the same day, the unit's lieutenant proceeded to conduct an exterior patrol of the station, noticing that a red cloth was hanging from one of the bars on the cell windows. He immediately entered the barracks, observing that Ramírez Zurita had committed suicide, using the shirt he was wearing when he was detained. E.- That finally, according to the autopsy protocol and the statement of the forensic doctor, Ramírez Zurita presented blood infiltrations on the inner side of the scalp and abrasions in the right scapular and left external malleolar regions, which were explained by the action of third parties, whether caused by blows with a blunt object, such as a baton or hose.

Source: pjud.cl, May 31, 2018