Original article: Fábrica de fake news contra rivales de Kast: Squella sabía de “Neuroc” y sus ataques, según Fiscalía Oriente

Investigations Uncover Fake News Operation Targeting Kast’s Rivals: Squella Aware of ‘Neuroc’ Attacks, According to Eastern Prosecutor’s Office

The Eastern Regional Prosecutor’s Office has obtained new evidence suggesting that Arturo Squella, president of the Republican Party, was aware of the social media operations executed by the troll account «Neuroc,» run by Ricardo Inaiman Barrios, aimed at defaming political opponents of José Antonio Kast.

According to an article published by the investigative media CIPER, on April 21, a woman who later filed a lawsuit against Inaiman for serious defamation personally met with Squella at the party’s headquarters in Las Condes.

During this meeting, she handed him a folder containing information revealing the identity behind the X (formerly Twitter) account @JackedIn, who called himself «Neuroc.» Chilevisión identified this individual as far-right activist Ricardo Inaiman Barrios, while another troll account, «Patito Verde,» was linked to former Channel 13 director Patricio Góngora.

The folder also included copies of messages, threats, and materials that evidenced a systematic campaign of attacks utilizing fake news and distortions against Kast’s rivals in the Chilean presidential election.

«She provided a folder with copies of messages and threats sent by ‘Neuroc’ and warned the Republican leader about the operations of various troll accounts supporting Kast’s campaign,» the cited media reported.

The attacks were widespread, primarily aimed at discrediting presidential candidate Evelyn Matthei of Chile Vamos, Jeannette Jara from the Unidad por Chile slate, and even Libertarian Party candidate Taryn Coopman, led by Johannes Kaiser.

The woman not only provided the evidence but also explicitly requested Squella intervene to stop the harassment.

In one piece of evidence submitted to the prosecutors, the complainant stated: «I asked Squella to intervene to stop Inaiman Barrios’ harassment.» However, according to her testimony, the harassment and disinformation operations orchestrated by «Neuroc» and a network of other troll accounts did not cease.

On July 28, three months after the meeting between the complainant and Squella, a heated controversy erupted when an edited video featuring candidate Evelyn Matthei was widely circulated by the group of accounts that included «Neuroc,» making it appear as though she suffered from Alzheimer’s. The former mayor of Providencia described the publication as a «disgusting campaign.»

The seriousness of the situation prompted the Chile Vamos coalition to compile internal reports to investigate the main accounts disseminating false information against Matthei and Johannes Kaiser. These documents clearly identified the account run by «Neuroc» and another profile known as «Dress,» concluding that they operated as part of a concerted group to generate misleading content that was then amplified by a broader network.

Although initially the connection between these accounts and the Republican Party seemed limited to mass distribution of Kast’s content—who, in turn, followed them on social media—a revelation by CIPER in early October revealed a more direct link. The publication exposed a chat on X where «Neuroc» acknowledged having a connection with the former presidential candidate’s team. In the message, «Neuroc» stated: «The reason why you did so well in regional councilors and advisers [for the Republican Party in the last municipal election] is that Kast has literally been doing territorial work throughout Chile. And we know that, we often talk with your CM [community manager].»

Squella Received More Warnings About Troll Account Attacks

The April 21 warning was not the first contact the complainant had with Squella. According to messages accessed by CIPER, the first interaction took place on March 30 through private messaging on X. When asked for a conversation, Squella replied: «At one point I read some of your very interesting comments, happy to meet. Let’s see if it works out during the week.»

Frustrated by the continued harassment, the complainant publicly confronted Squella again in August via the same social media platform. On August 23, the Republican president publicly responded from his account @arturo_squella:

“Hello (…), nothing further from endorsing disqualifications. I take this opportunity to call on those who supposedly share our ideas to focus on highlighting our proposals instead of disqualifying others; this is not doing us any favors. Thank you for your comment. Best wishes.”

This response, however, earned Squella a wave of criticism from the very group of accounts that operated «Neuroc.» The profile «Drestrump,» for example, criticized him for giving a platform to a «radical Octoberist» and demanded a retraction.

Even a month earlier, on July 14, the complainant had insisted via WhatsApp, informing Squella that @jackedlin was still attacking her. However, this message received no response.

The lack of concrete action against the harassment allegations and the persistence of accounts like «Neuroc» and «Patito Verde»—the latter linked to former Canal 13 director Patricio Góngora—raises questions about the role of digital operators in the current political ecosystem.

Justice Investigates ‘Neuroc’ Attacks as Matthei Moves On

The discussion regarding the role of these accounts and their impact on political campaigns has transcended the media realm to enter the judicial arena. Socialist Party legislators Daniel Manoucheri and Daniella Cicardini requested the National Prosecutor to open a case to investigate links between these disinformation operations and the Republican Party. This investigation is being handled by Valparaíso regional prosecutor Claudia Perivancich, who will receive the evidence from the meeting between Squella and the complainant.

Meanwhile, Evelyn Matthei, who had announced the filing of a lawsuit, ultimately did not proceed. This week, at the National Business Meeting (Enade), she remarked on Kast: «I forgive you and turn the page.»

In response to CIPER‘s inquiries about his version of the evidence provided to the prosecution, Arturo Squella did not respond to multiple contact attempts. Furthermore, the Republican Party’s press team committed to evaluating a response when contacted, but none was provided by the time of the report’s publication.

With these new elements in their possession, the Eastern Prosecutor’s Office is intensifying its investigation into a possible fake news factory that, with the knowledge of Republican leadership, may have operated with impunity to poison public debate and attack José Antonio Kast’s rivals.