«Today Marks a Significant Victory Against Corruption»: Mauricio Daza on the Preventive Detention of Former Prosecutor Manuel Guerra

Original article: «Hoy es un gran día contra la corrupción»: Mauricio Daza, querellante en causa que dejó en prisión preventiva al exfiscal Manuel Guerra

Attorney Mauricio Daza described the preventive detention of former prosecutor Manuel Guerra as an «excellent day for the defense of the rule of law and the fight against corruption in Chile.» This ruling is part of the so-called «Audio Case,» linked to the corruption network of Luis Hermosilla.

Daza, a plaintiff in this case, emphasized that the preventive measures were «the only response proportional to the seriousness of the actions he committed, which fall within the corruption scheme established by Luis Hermosilla, primarily to manage his own interests and those of his clients.»

In an exclusive statement to El Ciudadano, Daza recalled that Guerra provided confidential information and coordinated actions with Hermosilla in cases he was aware of through his role as the Metropolitan Prosecutor of Eastern Santiago.

As a result, he asserted that this is «probably the most severe act of corruption committed within the Public Ministry in Chile since the establishment of the institution.»

Andrés Chadwick’s Accountability?

Daza pointed out a significant detail from the judge’s ruling concerning Guerra, highlighting the benefits Guerra received for aiding Hermosilla: a job opportunity at the Universidad San Sebastián, «under conditions that were absolutely implausible for someone in his academic position,» the plaintiff remarked.

«This indicates that the hiring was, in fact, a payment for the favors Manuel Guerra provided,» Daza continued, noting that «it is interesting to point out that in this case, Luis Hermosilla did not directly provide this benefit; it was actually Andrés Chadwick who facilitated it.»

«Hermosilla acted merely as a link, an intermediary, which underscores the need for further investigation into the actions of the former Minister of the Interior in Sebastián Piñera’s government, Andrés Chadwick,» the attorney emphasized.

In this regard, Daza expressed his firm commitment, alongside attorney María Inés Horvitz, to push for the investigation and «ensure that no operational maneuver or arrangement obstructs the full clarification of what occurred.»

The plaintiff insisted that the final outcome must be a conviction «with exemplary penalties for all those who grotesquely violated the principles of integrity to benefit certain political sectors.»

El Ciudadano