The formalization hearing for 47 gendarmes and 23 civilians involved in Operation Apocalypse resumes on Saturday in Santiago, after prosecutors detailed how the network trafficked illegal goods in prisons. Fiscal Marcos Pastén described a corruption network involving bribes and control of prohibited services since 2020. The accused face charges of criminal association, bribery, and graft.
In Santiago's 12th Guarantee Court, the formalization hearing began on Friday for 47 gendarmes and 23 civilians involved in a corruption network dismantled through Operation Apocalypse. The Western Metropolitan Prosecutor's Office, led by regional fiscal Marcos Pastén, is investigating crimes such as criminal association, bribery, simple and aggravated graft, money laundering, and patrimonial infractions, with events dating back to at least January 2020.
Pastén explained that the probe uncovered organizations in facilities like the San Joaquín Women's Penitentiary Center and Santiago 1 Pre-Trial Detention Center, where inmates and guards colluded to smuggle food, alcohol, drugs, phones, and other prohibited items. “The existence of several organizations of individuals who, with diverse roles and sustained action over time, through a web of corruption, form a criminal system that charges and controls the trafficking of illegal or regulated goods and services,” the fiscal detailed.
In the San Joaquín CPF, an organization led by inmate Dora Jiménez set prices and managed funds transferred by relatives via third-party accounts, generating significant profits. In Santiago 1, the 'Los Colombia' group, led by figures like Jorge Humberto Herrera and Blanca González, operated from the Los Patos kiosk and facilitated irregular visits, called “gatitas,” in exchange for payments to officials.
Guards turned institutional controls into personal gains, selling security, prisoner placements, and hiding seizures to resell items. “This conduct transforms institutional control mechanisms into opportunities for personal economic benefit,” Pastén emphasized.
The hearing, split into two rooms due to the number of accused, extended because of the presentation of facts and will continue on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. Judge Francisco Ramos Pazó ordered the detainees kept handcuffed for security and in transit until precautionary measures are resolved.
