18 Mapuche Communal Leaders Acquitted in Alleged Timber Theft Case as Prosecution Fails to Provide Evidence

Original article: Absuelven a 18 comuneros mapuche en causa por presunto robo de madera: Fiscalía no logró probar delitos

In a unanimous decision, the Oral Criminal Court of Valdivia declared the acquittal of 18 Mapuche communal leaders who faced accusations regarding their alleged involvement in timber theft in the Trafún area of Panguipulli, within the Los Ríos region. The court determined that the evidence presented by the Public Prosecutor’s Office was insufficient to substantiate the alleged crimes or to establish the defendants’ participation in events dating back to 2018 and 2019.

The oral trial, which concluded last Friday, focused on charges initially brought by the Prosecutor’s Office against 20 members of indigenous communities, accused of stealing native species from land claimed to belong to a forestry company in the Trafún sector. Specifically, the communal leaders faced charges of simple theft and receiving stolen goods, offenses that could have resulted in prison sentences ranging from 3 to 5 years.

However, the court determined that the prosecution’s case theory lacked the necessary evidentiary support and categorically established that insufficient proof was provided to substantiate the defendants’ involvement in the timber theft, leading to their total acquittal.

Defense and Communal Leaders Value the Ruling and Highlight «Criminalization»

The acquittal news was met with satisfaction from the communal leaders and their legal representatives. In statements to Radio Bío Bío, Cristian Reinahuel, a spokesperson for the Vicente Reinahuel community and one of the acquitted, positively assessed the verdict while questioning the strength of the accusations faced during the trial.

«Clearly, it lacked the argument to prove what they were saying, and thus most of the accused, who are us, were acquitted. We claimed from the beginning that we were completely innocent of the charges,» Reinahuel expressed, highlighting the context of territorial reclamation surrounding the conflict.

In support of this view, one of the defense attorneys, Orietta Llauca, elaborated on the case’s context, asserting that these accusations are not isolated but reflect a systematic persecution of Mapuche communities seeking to reclaim their ancestral lands.

«Today we have established how Mapuche people are unjustly criminalized simply for fighting for their land. Clearly, the evidence was insufficient because the crime never existed, so the prosecution could not have evidence of something that did not occur,» she argued.

This position was supported by Mapuche public defender, Sunem Cárdenas, who also represented the acquitted. Cárdenas emphasized that the court confirmed what the defense had argued from the outset: the absence of criminal responsibility of their clients.

«This is consistent with the case theory maintained by this defense, which concluded that the theft charge against my clients could not be proven. Nor could their participation in the alleged crime be shown. Here, the evidence was insufficient, and this was established by the court,» Cárdenas affirmed.

The Deeper Conflict: Territorial Reclamation

Concurrently with the criminal proceedings, the case is situated within a complex dispute regarding land ownership and use in the Trafún area, pitting indigenous communities against a forestry company.

It is worth noting that the court hearings faced several delays, such as in July 2025, when the Valdivia Appeals Court had to rule on a complaint related to overlapping property titles.

According to Puelche.cl, the disputed territory is a space of ancestral use for the Mapuche communities, who historically have relied on these forests to obtain wood for heating and forage for their animals, long before the arrival of settlers and private individuals in the early 20th century.

The defending attorneys contextualized that the actions of the communal leaders cannot be separated from the longstanding struggle for territorial rights that has persisted for generations.

The area where the events took place, Trafún, is located 77 kilometers from the city of Panguipulli and 200 kilometers from Valdivia. It constitutes an ancestral territory for the Mapuche people. Currently, the old Lof Trafunko, recognized under the Merced Titles of 1913 in the names of Vicente Reinahuel and Juan Painepe, is fragmented into five registered indigenous communities with CONADI: Juan Painepe 1, Juan Painepe 2, Vicente Reinahuel, Kollanco, and Vicente Reinahuel Autónoma.

As reported by El Puelche.cl, these communities initiated a process to reclaim their ancestral territory in February 2011. This 15-year struggle seeks not only material subsistence but also the preservation and reproduction of the culture of the original Mapuche people in that space.

The Vicente Reinahuel, Juan Painepe, and Vicente Reinahuel communities were part of the original Lof Trafunko, a name lost during the initial land surveys and occupation in the area. The sector was renamed «Trafún,» which persists today, following the imposition of indigenous reductions in 1907, as noted by the portal.

These reductions drastically reduced the lands of the Lof (ancestral community) into two Merced Titles: Title No. 2410 for Vicente Reinahuel, granted on January 5, 1913, which recognized 1,357 hectares and 45 individuals; and Title No. 2409 for Juan Painepe, dated December 30, 1913, recognizing 286 hectares and 10 individuals. These titles did not recognize the full territory used seasonally by the lof, which extended from what is now the Trafun estate (currently known as Las Vertientes) to the Quetro Pillan volcano within Villarrica National Park.

According to a 2012 anthropological report, at least 52 sites of cultural significance were identified within this territorial space.

Among the most significant, found on the path to the peweñentu (Araucarias site) or pinaladas, are: «Cuche Pewen (Grandmother Pewen), Ruka Grürü (Lodging Place), Aliwe Mawiza (Mountain of Souls), and Kalfu Lafken (Blue Lagoon).»

The study indicates these spaces were occupied seasonally by the communities. Additionally, the area housed a Nguillatun plain and a palin field, which were abandoned due to violence following usurpation, settlement, and occupation by foreign and Chilean settlers around 1940, compounded by the subsequent annexation of much of the territory to Villarrica National Park, as reported by El Puelche.cl.

Dropped Charges for Humanitarian Reasons and Prosecution Silence

Throughout the proceedings, humanitarian reasons also played a role. Of the original 20 accused, two did not face the verdict of acquittal alongside the others, as they were terminally ill with cancer; their permanent dismissal from the process was requested and granted.

Despite the significance of the acquittal and the ongoing conflict between the communities and a forestry company, the Los Ríos Regional Prosecutor’s Office chose not to comment on the case.

When contacted by Radio Bío Bío, the prosecuting entity declined to provide statements regarding the court’s determination and the defense’s criticisms concerning the lack of evidence for the allegations.

Meanwhile, the affected communities filed a civil lawsuit seeking the reclamation of the land where the incidents occurred, indicating it is a ceremonial site.