Chile charges Pinochet with tax fraud over his millions in banks
By Larry Rohter The New York Times
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2005
RIO DE JANEIRO General Augusto Pinochet, the former military dictator of
Chile, was arrested Wednesday in Santiago on tax fraud and passport forgery
charges arising from secret bank accounts, holding millions of dollars, that he
maintained under false names in the United States and elsewhere.
Since he returned to Chile after being freed from detention in Britain in
1998, Pinochet has twice been formally accused of human rights violations that
occurred during the 17 years he was in power, but not brought to trial. This
new indictment marks the first time he has been charged with other crimes, and
lawyers said the likelihood of a trial and conviction was higher.
"I believe that, yes, it is definitely going to be possible to determine
the exact origins of Pinochet's multimillion-dollar patrimony," Carmen Hertz, a
human rights lawyer who filed one of the original complaints against Pinochet,
told reporters in the Chilean capital.
The former dictator, who will turn 90 on Friday and suffers from heart,
circulatory and neurological disorders, has thus far eluded trial in the human
rights cases on grounds that his health is too fragile. But court-appointed
doctors ruled last month that he was capable of standing trial for tax evasion
and related charges, which also include submitting false documents and reports.
Pablo RodrÃguez, a lawyer for Pinochet, harshly criticized the arrest
order, calling it "shameful" and saying that his client "is a man who has been
persecuted by international Marxism." He also said he would appeal the most
recent medical ruling and added that Pinochet could not afford to post the
$23,000 bail required of him because his personal assets had been frozen. He
will be held under house arrest unless his bail can be reduced.
U.S. Senate investigators originally uncovered about $8 million that
Pinochet and his wife had deposited in accounts at Riggs Bank in Washington.
But as a result of additional inquiries in Chile, official calculations of his
personal fortune have now grown to more than $27 million.
"I have always been an honest man," Pinochet said under questioning last
week by the investigative judge handling the case, Carlos Cerda.
Officers of the Pinochet Foundation have attributed his wealth to
donations and smart investments, but human rights lawyers say much of the money
came either from kickbacks on weapons deals or funds embezzled from the state.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
Fair play? Video games influencing politics. Click and talk back!
http://us.click.yahoo.com/u8TY5A/tzNLAA/yQLSAA/uTGrlB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->
Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Unsubscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED]
List owner : [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
