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Chile president investigated after Pandora Papers leak
The Chilean public prosecutor's office opened an investigation into President Sebastian Pinera over the sale of a mining company through a firm owned by his children.
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Chilean President Sebastian Pinera speaks during a press conference a day after he was mentioned in the 'Pandora Papers' media investigation exposing world leaders' use of tax havens, at La Moneda presidential palace in Santiago, on October 4, 2021. (AFP/Javier Torres)
T
he Chilean public prosecutor's office on Friday opened an investigation into President Sebastian Pinera over the sale of a mining company through a firm owned by his children, which appeared in the Pandora Papers leaks.
Attorney General Jorge Abbott opened the probe after the Pandora Papers revealed the sale of the Dominga mining company by a firm "linked to the family of President Pinera," said Marta Herrera, head of the anti-corruption unit in the public prosecutor's office.
Pinera hit out at the move, claiming he had already been absolved of any guilt in a 2017 investigation.
"I have full confidence that the courts, as they have already done, will confirm there were no irregularities and also my total innocence," said Pinera.
The sale of the mine to one of Pinera's closest friends dates to 2010, during his previous term as president.
"As president of Chile I have never, never carried out any action nor management related to Dominga Mining," added Pinera, who took no questions from journalists.
Herrera said the public prosecutor's office took the decision to investigate because of the possibility that the deal involved "bribery, eventual tax crimes, matters that will all ultimately be the subject of an investigation."
