He This Friday, the Public Ministry began the formalization of 12 of the 13 police officers involved in crimes against tenants, mainly Chinese, in the Meiggs neighborhoodin the commune of Santiago, a hearing that will continue next Monday in the Seventh Guarantee Court.
The day before, the Prosecutor’s Office arrested the dozen uniformed officers, all non-commissioned officers belonging to the Second Police Station of the Santiago Central Prefecturewhile there is a thirteenth person involved, an officer of the Third Police Station.
According to the first details of the case, they are linked to a network that charged Chinese merchants in the Meiggs neighborhood for security, with fees of approximately 1.5 million pesos. The investigation, which began in 2022, indicates the crimes of bribery, illegitimate coercion, theft, drug trafficking and illegal arrests.
This Friday, representing the affected tenants, the Association for the Development of the Meiggs Neighborhood declared that the police action resulted in extortion and threats.
“The police withdrew from the work of crime control and prevention, left some sectors of the neighborhood abandoned, and then approached the merchants, in this case Chinese, and offered them protection services., precisely to take care of their stores, so that they did not suffer theft. They themselves stopped going and then when they did go, they charged,” he said. Adolfo Numipresident of the group.
“Over time, Those protection services became extortion. When (the tenants) did not pay, very serious situations occur, such as a large group of police officers going to the premises, they are detained, but in reality they are not detained, but rather they are taken away in the radio patrols, they also take some relatives. detained, they threaten them, they take them for a walk, they pressure them to pay,” he denounced.
The investigation accuses that the police also charged to allow the loading and unloading of food products at certain places and times. smugglingmainly cigarettes.
The detention of the 12 police officers already arrested was extended until Monday, when their formalization of charges will continue. Meanwhile, they will remain detained in Santiago 1 and the San Miguel Preventive Detention Centers; one was placed under nightly house arrest.
Prior to today’s hearing, the Minister of the Interior and Public Security, Carolina Toháhighlighted the “proactive attitude” of Carabineros, since it was a complaint from Internal Affairs that uncovered the case. Besides, The institution confirmed that it will process the withdrawal of all those involvedwhom he called “criminals”.
