Chadwick Implicated: Lawyer Claims Former Prosecutor Guerra’s Case Connects to ex-Interior Minister

Original article: Caso exfiscal Guerra: querellante sostiene que Andrés Chadwick tiene calidad de imputado

In the ongoing investigation that has led to the preventive detention of former metropolitan regional prosecutor Manuel Guerra for alleged corruption, attorney María Inés Horvitz, acting as the complainant, asserted that former Interior Minister Andrés Chadwick is a party implicated in the case.

«He is indeed implicated. This was stated repeatedly by prosecutor (Mario) Carrera,» claimed the lawyer, who previously served as the president of the Criminal Committee of the State Defense Council.

Horvitz’s assertion follows the decision by the 4th Guarantee Court of Santiago to impose preventive detention on Guerra, as part of the investigation related to the so-called Hermosilla case, where he faces allegations of aggravated bribery, administrative misconduct, and breach of secrecy.

The court’s ruling came after nine lengthy sessions of formalization, during which the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the State Defense Council, and complainants requested the highest precautionary measure. In these sessions, regional prosecutor of Arica, Mario Carrera, charged Guerra with 13 incidents that reportedly occurred between 2016 and 2021, during which he allegedly maintained a series of conversations, primarily via WhatsApp, with attorney Luis Hermosilla, who is accused of tax crimes, bribery, and money laundering.

Carrera stated that the former prosecutor subjugated «the interests of the Public Prosecutor’s Office to a specific political group» and that his relationship with Hermosilla may have influenced at least five high-profile cases being investigated by the Metropolitan East Prosecutor’s Office during Guerra’s tenure from 2015 to 2022, including cases linked to Penta, Exalmar-Domingam, irregular political financing, and the so-called Hurricane Operation, all politically associated with the right and particularly with figures from the UDI.

In this context, Chadwick emerges as a key figure in the network of influences that, according to the complainant, operated around the former prosecutor.

The attorney asserted that the ex-secretary of state is not merely a witness or an involuntary participant but holds the status of an implicated party within the investigation, which examines the corruption surrounding the former prosecutor’s management.

In an interview granted to the program «Al Pan Pan,» hosted by journalist Mirna Schindler, attorney Horvitz stated that the ex-secretary of state formally holds the status of implicated party, and her team has requested that the Public Prosecutor’s Office take action regarding his situation.

«He is implicated, as is Hermosilla, who has not yet been formally charged concerning this angle. Obviously, we as complainants, I am referring to Mauricio (Daza) and myself, because there are other complainants and the State Defense Council as well, but we personally have a strong interest and have asked prosecutor Carrera to make a decision regarding Mr. Chadwick, as he is clearly involved in the sequence of events,» she expressed.

Mechanism of Bribery and the Former Prosecutor Guerra’s Network of Favors

Horvitz elaborated on the modus operandi purportedly employed by Manuel Guerra to solidify his network of influence. She described a systematic strategy whereby the former prosecutor accumulated favors and benefits in exchange for privileged information.

«What he did was create a credit account, meaning I provide you information, I act in ways that please the people with whom you are connected,» she explained.

The attorney added that, to establish the bribery allegation against Guerra, it is essential to prove that a request for benefits was made.

Among the actions identified by the investigation, Horvitz mentioned Guerra’s attempts to position himself within prestigious and powerful institutions.

«One of the latest requests was to be admitted to the Universidad San Sebastián with a good salary,» she noted.

Following his resignation from the prosecutor’s office in 2021, Guerra was immediately hired by the Universidad San Sebastián, an institution where Chadwick held influence, and if it is proven that the ex-minister intervened in that hiring, such an act could constitute bribery.

«He is (Chadwick) the one who could definitively ensure that Universidad San Sebastián hired this man (Guerra) at that salary,» the attorney pointed out.

Suspicions Regarding Universidad San Sebastián and Potential Political Financing

The complainant’s concern extended beyond the former prosecutor to the institutions that, from her perspective, may have been used as mechanisms for payment or restitution.

Horvitz placed particular emphasis on Universidad San Sebastián (USS), linking it directly to Guerra’s recent maneuvers and a possibly broader scheme of irregular financing.

The attorney expressed concern over an incident she deemed highly suspicious: the departure of the superintendent of education at a critical procedural moment. She explained that this departure occurred just as the agency was preparing to file charges against the university.

«He was ready to file charges, and suddenly, out of nowhere, he was asked to resign. This is very, very suspicious and clearly suggests that there is an attempt to prevent the details of all the UDI or right-wing figures who have been hired by that university from becoming public,» she asserted during the interview.

As she delved deeper into the analysis, the lawyer suggested that the university might be operating as a containment and compensation structure for public figures. According to her account, the investigation points to the hiring of public figures with salaries that do not correspond to their academic merits.

She noted that these hires could have functioned as a «paying box for those politicians who currently hold no position.»

«Let’s remember the case of Marcela Cubillos with 17 million pesos monthly,» she pointed out.

Horvitz called for a thorough investigation of these findings, as they could form the basis for establishing an eventual crime of irregular political financing.

Will Chadwick Face Charges?

When asked by the journalist about the possibilities of Andrés Chadwick being charged with a crime, she replied that it entirely depends on the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

«The only one who can formalize an investigation within the Public Prosecutor’s Office would be prosecutor Carrera; he is the one who must make the decision. We have already spoken with him on several occasions, asking him to let us know or to indicate whether he will formalize charges against Chadwick, because we are concerned that this sequence of events might remain somewhat incomplete, as we believe that Chadwick is the one who secured the job for Guerra at Universidad San Sebastián,» she affirmed.

«I believe it is very important for this case that prosecutor Carrera makes the decisions necessary to clarify the facts as they occurred, from the involvement of Mr. Guerra to even Mr. Chadwick,» emphasized the complainant attorney.