Almost two and a half months have passed since the kidnapping of the former lieutenant Ronald Ojeda from his apartment in the commune of Independence. In the early hours of February 21, he was kidnapped half-naked, without offering much resistance, by criminals characterized as PDI officials. Nine days later, his body was found underground in a raid in the commune of Maipu.
Since his disappearance, the Public ministry has worked under the leadership of the prosecutor Hector Barros with the aim of finding those responsible for this event and, above all, to determine the motive for the murder.
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This Wednesday, Mega Investigate released revealing details of an audio where former lieutenant Ojeda talks about a secret mission that he carried out in Colombia and Venezuela, a month before his kidnapping. That trip would have had the objective of destabilizing the regime of Nicolas Maduro.
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For prosecutor Barros “That trip has a certain relevance from the point of view of the theories that we can build.”. Theories that have been narrowed down, and that today mainly point to a kidnapping and murder with political motivationwhich would have been organized from Venezuela.
“What we have are the lines, and the political line is the one we are exploiting at this moment, which is the only one left,” the persecutor told Mega Investiga.
The information regarding the former lieutenant’s trip, shortly before his kidnapping and murder, reinforces the idea that what happened to him could respond to “retaliation” for his actions against the Venezuelan regime.
The chancellor Alberto Van Klaveren rated as “relevant” the information that emerged from the audio, and supported the work carried out by prosecutor Barros’ team. “We believe that it will obviously be up to the Public Ministry and the judicial sphere to evaluate the scope of this new data, of this new precedent,” he said.
New information that has not only been included in the review of the Public Ministry, but will also be part of the Investigative Commission of the Chamber of Deputies on organized crime and intelligence systemsestablished after the kidnapping of Ojeda.
“The case of the kidnapping and homicide of Ojeda reveals not only the fragilities of the Intelligence System, but also the inability of the State of Chile to provide protection to a subject who is a refuge who was a victim of political imprisonment in his country of origin.” , says the application document of 68 deputies for the creation of the CEI.
“The audio sheds more light on the political operation”
On Tuesday, April 23, the Special Investigative Commission was formed that will address the issue of former Lieutenant Ojeda, and the deputy was unanimously elected. Miguel Angel Becker (RN) as president.
Said group agreed to meet on Mondays in order to achieve a finished report in the sixty days that its operation will last, in case of not opting for an extension.
In conversation with Mega Investiga, the president of the instance assured that the information revealed in the audio will be an important factor to consider in the discussion in the next session of the commission, which will be held on May 6th.
“The report has provided important information that I hope the commission will consider, and this is how we are going to propose it next Monday”, he expressed.
The parliamentarian also explained that this type of information will force the investigative commission to “go to the bottom of the matter”, which would imply including – in addition to summonses to government authorities – presentations from both the prosecutor of the case and the lawyer. from the family of former lieutenant Ojeda.
For the liberal deputy Alejandro Bernalesmember of the commission, the audio revealed by Mega Investiga “sheds greater light on the political operation behind this case”.
“It is a precedent that, if its relationship with Ojeda’s death is confirmed, must be deeply analyzed because it raises the suspicion that there was a level of interference in our country to find the whereabouts of this Venezuelan soldier in Chile,” said Bernales.
For his part, the deputy Enrique Lee (Social Christian and Independent Committee), also a member of the parliamentary body, expressed: “Obviously what was stated in the report will direct our investigation.”.
First mentioned: Ministry of the Interior
The first official session of the Investigative Committee is scheduled for Monday, May 6, at noon. Instance to which the Minister of the Interior is summoned, Carolina Toháthe Undersecretary of the Interior, Manuel Monsalveand the Undersecretary of Crime Prevention, Eduardo Vergara.
A day where the heads of the Interior Ministry are expected to explain the purpose of the commission, which seeks to address the situation of organized crime in our country and the functioning of our intelligence systems.
The Minister of the Interior referred this Thursday to the audio revealed by Mega Investiga, after the dispatch of the new anti-terrorist law from the Senate to the Chamber of Deputies.
“The fact that former lieutenant Ojeda is an active person as an opponent and that he was part of opposition organizations was known,” said the chief of staff.
Next, he stressed that the content of the record affects the debate and analysis of the case, but “what is significant is the evidence, the criminal investigation (…) and the urgency and insistence that the two people who are presumably fugitives in Venezuela be located and detained”.
For the deputy Joanna Perez (Democrats), for Monday’s session it is “necessary to know if the national authorities, of this Ministry and others, They were aware of the interference of other countries in our country in relation to this alleged political motive.”.
Deputy Becker, for his part, stressed that “in these types of meetings there are going to be situations in which there will be complex information and that will require, in some cases, let them be secret”. And he added that this decision will be evaluated case by case, depending on the content delivered by the exhibitors.
In addition to the government authorities, the commission already has a list of the next summonses, which will be announced next Monday. On May 13, the lawyer for the family of former lieutenant Ojeda, Juan Carlos Manríquez, is expected to attend.
