Share

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Facebook Tweet Share on Twitter Share on WhatsApp Share on WhatsApp

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER

By Airam Fernández, from Santiago, Chile

[News updated on 02/11/2020]

Miguel Arenas Rodríguez was found dead on the morning of October 25th at his home in Colina, just hours before the start of the historic constitutional plebiscite in Chile. Miguel was gay, 36 years old, and according to information from several LGBT+ organizations, showed signs of torture.

Miguel was a hairdresser and served clients from his home in the Villa San Andrés de Esmeralda neighborhood of Colina, north of the Santiago metropolitan region. The Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movilh) filed a complaint with the Public Prosecutor's Office and reported that they will advise the victim's family on filing a lawsuit.

On Wednesday, October 28, the North Central Prosecutor's Office reported the arrest of a person charged with homicide, and on October 30, the Colina Guarantee Court ordered pretrial detention for Francisco Norambuena Padilla, 25, who was charged with robbery resulting in homicide in the Miguel Arenas case. The North Central Prosecutor's Office is handling the case and confirmed the information to Presentes.

The court set a 180-day deadline for the investigation of this crime, which, according to preliminary reports from the Carabineros (Chilean police), allegedly occurred after a contact was made through Grindr, one of the most popular dating apps used by the LGBT+ community.

The victim was found dead in her home, gagged and with her hands tied,” was the official statement released. Until the autopsy results are available, the charges will not be known.

“We are deeply concerned about this murder, which could potentially be another hate crime. We have asked the Prosecutor's Office to investigate the causes of the crime (…) and we received a satisfactory response, as the information we reported has already been forwarded to the Human Rights Unit of the North Metropolitan Regional Prosecutor's Office,” said Óscar Rementería, spokesperson for Movilh, in a statement.

According to information from Movilh, Miguel was found bound hand and foot. “ It is believed he may have been raped. He had a stick in his mouth (…) and an object with which he was asphyxiated,” Rementería said. She also mentioned a detail that she believes could guide the investigation: all of his belongings were in his house, except for his cell phone and identification documents.

Carlos Fernández, a friend of the victim, also believes there was a homophobic element to the murder. “His family is devastated by this situation and is waiting for a response from the Prosecutor's Office. We demand justice for our friend, but also that our rights be strengthened,” he told Presentes.

candlelight vigil has been organized for Tuesday evening, October 27th, in Colina Plaza, in the neighborhood where Miguel lived.

There is widespread concern within the activist community about the escalating wave of violence sweeping the country. In recent weeks, at least four attacks against members of the community have been reported, including the murder of two gay activists.

“We expect the Prosecutor’s Office to be more sensitive in considering this hypothesis (that of a hate crime) in all its investigations, because if proven, the aggravating circumstance of the Zamudio Law applies,” Rementería said.