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News > Chile

Chilean Police Captain Arrested Over Blinding of Woman in 2019

  • Fabiola Campillai blinded as a result of an attack with a tear gas canister, Santiago, Chile, August 28, 2020.

    Fabiola Campillai blinded as a result of an attack with a tear gas canister, Santiago, Chile, August 28, 2020. | Photo: EFE

Published 28 August 2020
Opinion

Human rights organizations require authorities to investigate all cases of police brutality.

Chile’s Investigations Police (PDI) announced the arrest of former Captain Patricio Maturana, who is responsible for the incident that blinded Fabiola Campillai during a protest last year.

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Maturana is the main suspect of firing a tear gas canister directly into Campillai's face on November 26, 2019. She was waiting for the bus to go to work when several officers attacked a group of demonstrators who were passing by near her.

After the incident, the police officer was discharged even when it was proved that he did not assist the woman. Campillai, 36, who is a mother of three, lost her sight, taste, and smell.

“The government has never tried to know how am I feeling, not even when I was hospitalized. The person who blinded me must pay for what he did. He should go to jail,” Campillai said.

In July, a video filmed with a police officer's camera and that shows Maturana shooting the gas canister that blinded the young woman was leaked.

After the detention, her lawyer Alejandra Arriaza pointed out that the Chilean Military Police concealed information related to the case and therefore obstructed the justice as they knew from the first day who had fired.

Human rights organizations started a campaign that demands an urgent investigation not only on Maturana but also on other law enforcement officials who have been linked with other events of excessive use of force.

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