Santiago Court Sentences Carabineros Captain to 7 Years for Blinding Civilian in 2019 Incident

In a unanimous ruling (case number 314-2024), the court – composed of judges Pedro Suárez Nieto (president), Cheryl Fernández Albornoz, and Isabel Espinoza Morales (reporter) – also imposed accessory penalties including a lifetime absolute disqualification from public office and political rights, and a complete ban on professional activities during the term of his sentence.

Additionally, the court dismissed the personal accusation made by the National Institute of Human Rights (INDH), which legally classified the acts as constituting the crime of aggravated assault during torture.

Event Details

The court established, beyond a reasonable doubt, that around 8:48 PM on October 28, 2029, the accused, then a captain of Carabineros, «proceeded to Alameda Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins, northbound lane, between Tenderini and San Antonio streets in the Santiago commune, to verify a supposed attempt to loot the Hites store.»

«Also present were at least one other tactical vehicle of similar characteristics and the water cannon known as LA-50, all of which were situated in the northbound lane of Avenida Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins, between the numbered addresses 757 and 799 (which corresponds to a Salcobrand pharmacy),» the ruling states.

In that area, the text continues, «the accused, along with Sergeant Rafael Guzmán Cruz, disembarked from the mentioned tactical vehicle. It is important to note that no flagrant crime against property was detected, hence no report was made to the Public Ministry regarding these events.»

«At the moment of disembarking, Sergeant Guzmán was carrying a gas launcher or stopper rifle, while the accused Carvajal Díaz had a Hatsan model escort shotgun designed for non-lethal 12 mm ammunition,» it adds.

«The victim, meanwhile, was at the intersection of San Antonio and Avenida Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins, on the eastern sidewalk, where he proceeded to throw an object (a piece of metal) at one of the armored vehicles of Carabineros. After this action, facing him at a distance of 13.9 meters, without any aggression or the presence of others, the accused aimed his firearm at a 90° angle towards the victim and fired directly at his face, resulting in one of the pellets striking and penetrating the lower part of his left eye, and subsequently, after the victim had turned his back, shot him specifically in his right scapula and gluteus,» the resolution details.

As a result of the assault, the victim «suffered a severe ocular trauma from a projectile (pellet) in the orbit, evolving with sclopetaria retinopathy, affecting the central area of the retina (macula) with total and irreversible loss of visual acuity in the left eye and loss of stereoscopic vision two years after the trauma took place.»

Currently, the court states, the victim «presents complete loss of visual function in the left eye, which constitutes permanent and irrecoverable blindness. This visual impairment prevents him from engaging in any activity requiring depth perception (stereoscopic vision) and wide visual field, and implies that he will require lifelong rehabilitation, follow-ups, and ophthalmological treatments, as well as psychological support and therapies.»

Finally, the ruling establishes that «the injurious element that caused the left orbital trauma, with a fracture of the orbital floor and involvement of the inferior orbital nerve, was surgically removed at the ocular trauma unit (UTO) of Hospital del Salvador on November 13, 2019.»

Check the complete ruling HERE

4° TOP de Santiago condena a capitán de Carabineros por apremios ilegítimos calificados https://t.co/jk8Q2ScGbY pic.twitter.com/OngdJfXjKJ

— Poder Judicial Chile (@PJudicialChile) March 3, 2026