Sources, investigator threatened
A purported multi-billion dollar weapons fund amassed by the Chilean military may have used to help pay for an administrator’s personal travel and gambling habits, including horse bets and casino gaming.
According to Bloomberg News, the administrator stole at least $3.5 million to finance the perks. The misuse of funds was uncovered by journalist Mauricio Weibel, who said this case may be the tip of the iceberg. “We still don’t know how big this is, but we know that corruption is widespread,” Weibel told the news outlet. “Every day we see information of larger cases and our feeling is that this is only the beginning of a long investigation about corruption and fraud within the armed forces.”
The weapons fund, built on 10 percent of the sales of a state-owned copper mining company, may have grown to as much as $14.3 billion between 2000 and 2015. The military had easy access to the money, and minimal input from the government on how it was to be spent.
Lawmaker Jaime Pilowsky, who heads the congressional commission that is investigating corruption in the army, said, “It is an abomination that in times of democracy this law operates under such secrecy. There can’t be more secret laws closed in vaults, difficult to access even for congressmen.” An ongoing investigation by military prosecutor Paola Jofre has turned up some 2,500 questionable invoices submitted by administrators of the fund in less than a year.
Prosecutors have charged six military officials and another three civilians who were contracted to do work for the army and produced false invoices. At least two of the officials have admitted their guilt.
As the scandal came to light, Weibel said both he and his sources were threatened. “Most of my sources were physically or verbally threatened and my house was broken into three times as I wrote the book,” he told Bloomberg.
“This is the moment to make changes,” Defense Minister Antonio Gomez said Friday. “To get out of this situation, we can’t take shortcuts or deny reality. The first step is to recognize the mistakes and the negligence that led to this situation.”
