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Army justice leads probe into
Chile's Antuco tragedy
The Military Court of Chile on
Wednesday appointed an army
justice at the head of a probe
into last week's tragedy that
killed over 30 conscripts in the
country's southern Antuco
mountain region.
Col. Juan Arab was put in charge
of the probe under public
pressures and at the request of
Defense Minister Jaime Ravinet,
according to judge Alejandro
Solis who presides over the
Military Court.
The investigation will focus on
those deemed as accountable for
having ordered the training
excursion in bad weather
conditions: Maj. Patricio
Cereceda, regiment commanders
Col. Roberto Mercado and Lieut.
Col. Luis Pineda.
If proved responsible, they
might face charges of failure to
perform military duties and
mistreatment.
After a six-day search, rescuers
found 34 bodies as of Wednesday.
There were still 11 soldiers
reported missing.
A total of 433 soldiers, most of
them aged 18 or 19, were caught
in a sudden blizzard a week ago
in the high Andes near the town
of Los Angeles, where they were
taking a training exercise.
Tuesday's report said 26 were
killed and 19 missing.
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