President: “Chile expects action and a great deal of determination in the fight against crime”
The President of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, this morning announced the release of the first Preliminary Investigations Manual, an instrument aimed at improving response times and gathering evidence of the most commonly reported crimes. In an event also attended by the Minister of the Interior and Public Security, Jorge Burgos, and the country’s top prosecutor, Sabas Chahuán, the President delivered the manual to the Director General of Carabineros, Bruno Villalobos, and the General Director of the Investigative Police, Héctor Espinosa.
When a crime is committed, preliminary evidence-gathering tasks are essential to the overall investigation, effective criminal prosecution, and the eventual sentencing. These tasks must be carried out promptly and immediately reported to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, as established by Article 87 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Speaking at the event, the President underscored that “This manual we have just delivered to the Director General of Carabineros and the Director General of the Investigative Police is much more than a simple document. It is an effective tool for addressing one of the main concerns of our citizens: security, both the physical security of individuals and the risk of losing property that has been obtained through hard work.”
President Bachelet, along with emphasizing that the manual is the result of joint work among the government, the two police forces, and the prosecutor’s office, said that the new prosecutor general will share findings regarding compliance with the instructions with the top command of each police force, and the entities will work together to improve the manual’s application. “This is how progress is made: with perseverance, with unity, working together to provide greater security to Chile’s families. We are all in this together, in the same fight, with the same objectives, so we have to complement each other in a virtuous relationship.”
The manual contains a series of general instructions regarding preliminary police investigative work, depending on the type of violation. These tasks include identifying victims and witnesses, taking witness statements in the appropriate manner, confiscating evidence that proves that the crime was committed, and identifying the participants.
It also contains instructions for procedures to be followed in regard to new crimes such as theft with force of automated teller machines, which includes 24 detailed instructions for both prosecutors and police officers for correctly gathering evidence; auto theft with force, known as the “door slam,” which includes instructions for photographing the property involved and the site where the theft occurred in all cases. This was previously left to the discretion of the prosecutor on duty or the police officer filing the report.
The Preliminary Investigations Manual will be available online so that members of the general public can read it and request that all procedures be carried out if they are the victim of robbery.
The President said the manual, along with an increase in the number of Carabineros, Investigative Police detectives and expansion of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, is aimed at fighting crime and reducing the public’s perception of insecurity. “We can’t ignore that fact that crime is something that affects families very profoundly. That’s why we have to combat it with a great deal of force, but also with effectiveness. Chile expects its government to take action and a great deal of determination in fighting crime. We have been doing that, and we will continue to do it,” she added.
In her concluding remarks, President Bachelet said the manual “demonstrates once again that working in coordination with all of the pertinent institutions is the only way to stop crime¬—along with prevention, of course—and bring the peace that my fellow Chileans want and deserve back to our streets and homes.”