Former Prosecutor Vinko Fodich and three police officers detained for extortive kidnappings in Chile
The Supra-Territorial Prosecution Service detained former prosecutor Vinko Fodich and three active PDI officers in an operation against organised crime in Santiago.
Former Prosecutor Fodich detained in operation against extortive kidnapping network
At least seven people were arrested on Wednesday in the Metropolitan Region of Santiago as part of an investigation into extortive kidnapping, criminal association and extortion, according to elpais.com. Among those apprehended are former prosecutor Vinko Fodich and three active officers from the Police of Investigations (PDI).
The operation was executed by the Supra-Territorial Prosecution Service—a body that investigates cases of organised crime and high complexity across all regions of the country—in conjunction with the PDI. "Proceedings remain ongoing regarding this operation," the Prosecution Service stated through its X account. Subsequently, the body clarified that the detention of the seven accused was extended until Friday before the Seventh Guarantee Court, where the investigation evidence will be presented.
Career of the former prosecutor charged
Fodich is a criminal law lawyer who graduated from the University of Valparaíso. He was a prosecutor in Curicó between 2001 and 2004, and later served as head of the local Prosecution office in Ñuñoa, Providencia and La Reina between 2005 and 2010, a period in which he specialised in economic crimes, corruption and money laundering. He subsequently worked in the Under-Secretariat for Crime Prevention during Sebastián Piñera's first government (2010-2014). He currently works at a law firm together with former prosecutors Alejandro Peña and José Antonio Villalobos.
The investigation began after irregularities were detected within the PDI. The institution's Internal Affairs Department opened an investigation that led to a joint case with the Supra-Territorial Prosecution Service, headed by prosecutor Miguel Ángel Orellana.
Links to an investigated exchange house
The Supra-Territorial Prosecution Service had already been investigating Fodich in a previous case, in which it had sought judicial authorisation to intercept his telephone calls and review his bank accounts. The lawyer shares ownership of the exchange house E-Panda Financiero SpA—previously called Change Panda SpA—with Luis Muñoz Morales, a former candidate for city councillor for the PPD, condemned to 800 days of suspended sentence and a fine for money laundering. Muñoz allegedly had links to a Colombian criminal organisation dedicated to "drop-by-drop" loans, according to a special report by TVN's Informe Especial published in August.
According to Muñoz's conviction judgement, to which TVN had access, the exchange house was used by Stiven Enríquez, identified as the head of a criminal organisation in Chile, to carry out 58 dollar purchase operations for more than 722 million pesos—equivalent to 779,000 dollars—between 30 May and 12 November 2024. Those funds were allegedly converted into cryptocurrencies. A week ago, the Financial Market Commission (CMF) warned that E-Panda Financiero SpA is not registered or authorised to provide regulated services.
Before his arrest, Fodich had denied any participation in a criminal association. He maintained that all his income comes from his professional practice and that his relationship with the exchange house is limited to that of a minority shareholder, with no involvement in the administration of the firm.
Other detained persons and political connections
Among those apprehended is also Luis Moraga Parisi, first cousin of former presidential candidate and leader of the People's Party, Franco Parisi, according to reporting by Ciper.
Fodich is a lawyer of recognised standing in cases of high public significance. Among his clients is Haiwei Xu, a Chinese national considered a person of interest in an investigation into alleged criminal organisation operating in Estación Central, and investigated in cases involving smuggling and product counterfeiting. He also represented former Carabineros corporal Sebastián Zamora, current deputy for the Republican Party, who was acquitted in July 2024 of responsibility for the fall of a 16-year-old teenager from Puente Pío Nono into the Mapocho river, which occurred on 2 October 2020 during the social uprising.
However, Fodich was unable to be present at that trial because he was facing charges for driving under the influence of alcohol with results of serious and minor injuries. On 30 June that year, he drove in the wrong direction on the road in the commune of Providencia and collided with another vehicle in which a woman and a nine-year-old girl were travelling.
Source: Google News CL — Crime