A court in Calbuco has ordered pretrial detention for the sole suspect implicated in the theft of a truck carrying 11 tons of salmon fillets in the Los Lagos region. The incident took place early last Saturday morning when criminals intercepted the vehicle as it was traveling from Calbuco toward Puerto Montt, according to biobiochile.cl.
The assailants used a ruse to force the driver to stop. A gray car overtook the truck, and a man stepped out of the vehicle claiming that the loading machinery had caused damage. During the confrontation, at least three individuals intimidated the driver with a fake firearm and forced him into the private car, the report stated.
Following the robbery, the criminals abandoned the victim in the rural area of Guayanc Bajo, where they also stole his cell phone. Meanwhile, the truck, carrying cargo from the company MOWI, continued its route under the control of the hijackers.
Arrest and criminal charges
The police operation culminated in the interception of the truck at the intersection of Avenida 21 de Mayo and Almirante Latorre. At the time of the arrest, the driver was intoxicated and attempted to run over Carabineros officers, forcing the police to draw their weapons to effect the arrest, according to the formal charges.
Calbuco's chief prosecutor, Marcelo Maldonado, charged the individual with several offenses, including robbery with violence, driving under the influence, property damage, possession of robbery tools, and resisting authority. The prosecutor detailed that the investigation is now focused on identifying the two accomplices who managed to flee the scene.
In response, the defense challenged the consistency of the charges. Public defender Claudio Herrera argued that there is only confirmed evidence of the detainee's involvement in driving the stolen vehicle and questioned the charge of resisting authority, noting a lack of surveillance footage to support the police account.
Despite the defense's arguments, Judge Francisco Cerda ordered pretrial detention due to the gravity and number of offenses involved. The prosecution has set a 100-day period for the investigation, which will focus on recovering the victim's cell phone and analyzing a GPS signal jammer found in the suspect's possession.
