Court sentences Manuel Contreras to 10 years in prison for kidnapping of La Legua leaders

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SANTIAGO. -  In the first Human Rights ruling issued in 2008, the Fourth courthouse of the Santiago Court of Appeals has sentenced General Manuel Contreras to 10 years in prison for his role in the kidnapping of seven leaders of La Legua between December 18th and 22nd of 1973.

The court issued the same sentence for ex-agents Marcelo Moren Brito and José Friz Esparza.

This decision replaces the ruling previously made by Law Minister Jaoquín Billard, who had exonerated the defendants citing the statute of limitations.

After examining the records however, Ministers Dobra Lusic and Manuel Valderrama, along with Attorney María Victoria Valencia, deemed the kidnappings war crimes through the application of the Geneva Convention, which prevents the use of a statute of limitations on crimes of this nature.