Chilean judge petitions court to strip Pinochet immunity in embezzlement case News
Chilean judge petitions court to strip Pinochet immunity in embezzlement case

[JURIST] A Chilean judge Tuesday asked that former president Augusto Pinochet [JURIST news archive; Wikipedia profile] be stripped of his immunity from prosecution on embezzlement charges. In his last action before joining the Chilean Supreme Court, Judge Sergio Munoz, who extensively investigated Pinochet for tax evasion and embezzlement, petitioned the Santiago Court of Appeals to force Pinochet to face charges related to approximately $27 million he held in offshore accounts; his defense insists the money derived from legitimate sources. The move would not be unprecedented as the Court of Appeals has already stripped Pinochet of immunity [JURIST report] from prosecution in several human rights cases, notwithstanding the tradition of according the to all former Chilean presidents. Pinochet, 89, who has so far avoided conviction due to mild dementia, underwent medical examinations [UPI report] on Tuesday to determine if he is fit to stand trial in the Operation Condor [Wikipedia backgrounder] human rights case. Reuters has more.

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