The Chilean prosecutor also said that the Aragua Train was hired to murder Ronald Ojeda; In the same way, he indicated that this gang continues to operate in his country, despite the arrests and dismantling
The regional prosecutor of the South Metropolitan Prosecutor’s Office and coordinator of the Organized Crime and Homicide Team of Chile, Héctor Barros, assured that the murder of Ronald Ojeda was a political crime and not a common kidnapping, as he maintained that it was not a case of extortion because there was no request for money in exchange for the victim’s release.
“What we can maintain based on the investigation is that the Venezuelan government is behind Ronald Ojeda’s crime,” said Barros.
In the same way, the prosecutor added that to kill Ojeda the Aragua Train was hired, a gang that has spread throughout Latin America and that the Venezuelan authorities affirm “does not exist”, despite the fact that at other times (recent) They have said that they do exist and link it to the opposition.
«I continue to maintain that Ronald Ojeda’s crime is a political crime. The profile of the victim, a former lieutenant in the Venezuelan army and an activist against the Venezuelan government, is clearly political. There was no ransom request, which is typical of kidnappings committed by groups such as the Tren de Aragua, which seek to obtain money through their criminal activities. In this case, there was no such motivation. “What happened to Ronald was a hitman, but also a hiring of the Aragua Train to kidnap and murder him,” he explained in conversation with the media. Radio DNA.
Ronald Ojeda was a former Venezuelan military man, but he did not have a high profile. He was arrested in 2017 along with three other soldiers for allegedly being involved in acts with “conspiratorial purposes and planning terrorist actions.”
All were charged with the crimes of rebellion, instigation of rebellion, mutiny and treason. However, Ojeda escaped from prison in November 2017 during a transfer and claimed that he was subjected to torture. In 2023, Chile granted him political asylum.
Ronald Ojeda was kidnapped on February 21 of last year, in Chile, by individuals who posed as police officers. 10 days later he was found in a 1.4 meter deep ditch and under a cement block in the city of Santiago.
In December 2023, former military man Ojeda traveled to Venezuela supposedly to organize a coup d’état against Nicolás Maduro. After learning this information, prosecutor Barros explained that after the rapid execution of the crime, between 24 and 72 hours after the kidnapping, and Their political profile led them to the conclusion that “this murder has a political background related to their opposition to the government of Venezuela.”
In relation to the murder of Ronal Ojeda, the prosecutor Tarek William Saab said that Chile used the case to “put bad” Venezuela At the international level, what he considered is part of what the ruling party calls the “hybrid war.”
Aragua train continues in Chile
Prosecutor Héctor Barros also insisted that the Aragua Train continues to operate in Chilean territory, despite the arrest of several members of the criminal organization. “This organization operates through cells that still remain in the national territory,” he stated.
The authority specified that the Aragua Train has undergone changes and although there are several members arrested and others who have fled the country, “its presence remains significant. We can affirm that the Aragua Train continues to operate in Chile. Around 14% of the detainees we have or the cases we are investigating are related to this criminal organization,” he said.
Likewise, Barros said that “there are many other cases in which the Aragua Train is operating indirectly through other groups and networks.”
Regarding the progress in the dismantling of the Aragua Train, Barros pointed out that there are currently more than 30 cases linked to this organization and that 36 defendants are in preventive detention. “When we talk about ’causes’, we often refer to investigations that include multiple crimes grouped in a single file, such as kidnappings with homicide.”
*Journalism in Venezuela is carried out in a hostile environment for the press with dozens of legal instruments in place to punish the word, especially the laws “against hate”, “against fascism” and “against the blockade.” This content was written taking into consideration the threats and limits that, consequently, have been imposed on the dissemination of information from within the country.
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