Adriana Rivas will remain in prison after the New South Wales Local Court Magistrate Robert Williams refused her request for a provisional release, as the former Chilean agent failed to demonstrate special circumstances for the grant of bail.
After the decision, Rivas' attorney Frank Santisi told SBS Spanish he was concerned about Rivas' health, as she requires surgery for a pre-existing heart condition. He also claimed the issues raised by her doctor "had not been investigated", and that the COVID-19 pandemic represented a risk for the detainee behind bars.
"I'm concerned for her health, not only [her] physical health but mental health", he said.
Highlights:
- Rivas has requested provisional release on two previous occasions before this application was refused.
- She is accused in Chile of participating in the aggravated kidnappings of seven people during the Pinochet dictatorship. She denies the charges.
- Rivas is fighting a legal battle against her extradition while she's been behind bars since her detention on 19 February 2019.
Lawyers for Adriana Rivas, accused in Chile of the aggravated kidnapping of seven people during the Pinochet regime, submitted this third request for provisional release on the 29th of April, while her extradition case is being resolved.
Trent Glover, the attorney representing the Chilean government in the extradition process, rejected Rivas' allegations at the last hearing, on the 29th of April, arguing there was no evidence to support that her health issues couldn't be treated while in detention.
Glover also claimed there was no evidence to prove that her health was especially at risk.
Rivas, a former agent of the National Intelligence Directorate (DINA), a secret police established during the military dictatorship led by Augusto Pinochet in Chile, is accused of participating in the aggravated kidnappings of Victor Diaz, Fernando Ortiz, Fernando Navarro, Lincoyan Berrios, Horacio Cepeda, Hector Veliz and Reinalda Pereira, which occurred between 1974 and 1977.
The Chilean Supreme Court issued her extradition order in 2014. Rivas denies all charges.
Lawyer Adriana Navarro, who represents the families of victims in Chile, said her clients are happy about Magistrate Williams' decision to not grant her bail.
From Chile, Maria Luisa Ortiz, whose father was tortured and killed during the Pinochet regime, spoke for the families of the victims in a written statement:
"We were dissapointed to hear that during the bail hearing Riva's barrister characterised the detention and sunsequent disappearance of our loved one as rumours."
"We are pleased and moved by the fact that bail has been refused, and trust that this extradition request will now proceed without delays."
Rivas' extradition hearing will be held in the New South Wales Local Court on 16-17 June 2020.
Rivas' lawyer said since the decision on her bail application has come so close to the extradition hearing, it would be "probably unlikely" that they would apply for bail again but that they would "wait for instructions".
Previous requests for release
Magistrate Margaret Quinn in June 2019 . Her defence had submitted medical reports about her poor health, among other arguments.
Magistrate Quinn examined each of the allegations, a set of 30 factors, and decided that they did not constitute exceptional circumstances for grant of a provisional release.
Following a new request from Rivas before the Federal Court, Judge Wendy Abraham ratified Magistrate Quinn's decision in October 2019.
