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Call to Investigate Helicopter Shooting as Attempted Murder

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On Saturday, when it was reported that a helicopter fighting a forest fire in Lebu, in the Arauco province of the Biobío Region, was shot at, the president of the Chilean Wood Corporation (Corma), Rodrigo O'Ryan, warned that the incident "endangered the lives of the crew."

The attack is being investigated by the Biobío Prosecutor's Office, which has tasked the PDI (Investigative Police) with clarifying what happened. According to preliminary reports, bullet impacts were found on the structure of the aircraft, owned by the company Arauco, while the pilots were loading water.

"Here, we cannot speak of quasi-criminal homicide, because the intention of those who shoot at a moving aircraft is to bring it down," explains lawyer Rodrigo Ruiz, who has advised on complaints for arson attacks against forestry operations, regarding which crimes should be prosecuted.

He adds that "an attempted murder and a possible criminal conspiracy must be investigated, in which the perpetrators of this violent attack are also linked to the intentionality of the fires, land usurpation, and timber theft."

From the Association of Forestry Contractors, its manager, René Muñoz, notes that there are "interconnected crimes that must be addressed comprehensively, because there is a close relationship between the intentionality of the fires, actions to prevent their control, and timber theft."

Furthermore, he points out that "this type of crime is very serious, because an intentional fire not only destroys the forest and harms companies but also causes enormous damage and even the death of neighbors. Therefore, hindering firefighting efforts must be considered an aggravating factor."

Meanwhile, the Biobío regional delegate, Eduardo Pacheco, announced that the Ministry of the Interior will join the investigation and file a complaint against those responsible.

Source:El Mercurio