Karen Rojo’s Extradition Approved: Countdown Begins for Former Antofagasta Mayor to Return to Chile and Serve Fraud Sentence

Original article: La fuga no fue eterna: Karen Rojo entra en cuenta regresiva para volver a Chile y cumplir condena por fraude al Fisco

Following the Netherlands’ approval of her extradition, the countdown has begun for former Antofagasta mayor, Karen Rojo, to return to Chile after fleeing the country four years ago to serve a sentence for fiscal fraud amounting to $26 million, which took place between 2015 and 2016 during her tenure in office.

It is important to note that the ex-mayor, associated with RN and UDI, has been a fugitive from Chilean justice since escaping the country on March 23, 2022, the same day the Supreme Court upheld her conviction.

Following the escape, Interpol issued a red notice to locate the former mayor, which culminated four months later when she was found living in a refugee shelter in Groningen, Netherlands. Since then, Rojo has been detained in a women’s prison in Utrecht, awaiting the finalization of her extradition process.

As reported by Bio Bío Chile, the official communication has already been sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Court of Appeals in Antofagasta. The legal correspondence, sent on July 6 under document No. 2700 by the Legal Affairs Directorate, stated that Dutch authorities have made the former mayor available for the final phase of the extradition process. The court has, in turn, forwarded the details to Interpol Santiago, which will coordinate the police team responsible for overseeing Rojo’s return to the country.

Once she arrives in Chile, the former mayor will have to serve a sentence of five years and one day in prison following her conviction for fraud and incompatible negotiations. This conviction stemmed from an investigation revealing that she hired a communications agency for political advice on her 2016 re-election campaign for $24 million, funds that were improperly paid with school grant and municipal health resources in the so-called Main case, leading to her dismissal and disqualification from holding public office.

The defense for the ex-mayor attempted to halt the process through judicial appeals and even a request for international protection, but in March 2023, the Rotterdam Court accepted the Chilean state’s request.

Four years of legal battles have kept the case in a prolonged international dispute. Now, with the extradition complete, Karen Rojo faces the end of her fugitive status and the beginning of her sentence in Chile, thus closing a chapter that has kept the national justice system and the citizens of Antofagasta on edge.