From political heir Sebastián Piñera to investigation for influence peddling: the downfall of Andrés Chadwick

“All roads lead to Chadwick. A phrase coined by a socialist MP a few weeks ago Daniel Manouchehri, This had a profound impact on Chilean public opinion. This is because whoever was the Home Secretary and strong man two governments Sebastian Pinera -who was also his cousin- is frequently mentioned in the chats of his best friend, a lawyer Luis Hermosillawhose iPhone 14 turned out to be real Pandora’s box and gave rise to ‘Audio Case’who sprayed the ministers High Court, state representatives, entrepreneurs and a good part Chilean Right.

Under Chadwick, Hermosilla became the most powerful lawyer in the Piñera governments. Today is in preventive detention, accused of repeated briberymoney laundering and tax crimes and Chadwick will soon be called to testify in his case. However, Manouchehri himself warned this Wednesday that “Andrés Chadwick can change his quality at any time.” from witness to accusedbecause in every scene of the case “There are his tracks.

The MP was specifically referring to what is now called the edge “University of San Sebastian”a scandal that was revealed less than a week ago Calculator and has the ropes Marcela Cubillosformer Minister of Education under Piñera and candidate for mayor from the requested municipality of Santiago Counts with support from the right. Cubillos earned an exorbitant salary of 17 million pesos for four years as an academic— more than 18 thousand USD per month –she even spends long periods in Spain, where her husband lives. The salary is 21% higher than what is paid at Harvard.

Due to this, the entity was accused of being payment box from the right – but mainly from the Independent Democratic Union -, from public money, because although the mentioned study hall is a private institution, 45.5% it came from her income last year state funds such as scholarships, state approved credit (CAE) and funds that any university can apply for.

To make matters worse, according to the report that broke the news, around 30 people connected to the right that held positions in Piñera’s governments they landed at USS once his time in government ended. A number of them also appear in the discussions of the Hermosilla lawyer.

Before the case was revealed, the former Minister of National Assets, Sebastián Piñera, had already resigned from the university, Philip Ward – accused of his alleged involvement in the “Grupo Patio” group – and former Eastern Metropolitan Regional Prosecutor, Manuel Guerra, professor of law at USS after his relationship with Hermosilla became known, which denied.

Chadwick, chairman of the board from the University of San Sebastián, where he arrived after being forbidden va political process hold public office five years -for his responsibility in managing the social epidemic in 2019-, resigned on his position in the said house studies this Wednesdayaccording to him to focus complaint against which he filed the day before ten pro-government MPs for dragging him into the very “Audios case” into his constitutional charges two ministers of the Supreme Court.

In these indictments, his name almost always appears only with his initials “ACH”, mentioned in Luis Hermosilla’s collusions with Supreme Court justices, Angela Vivanco and Jean Pierre Matus.

“Due to lawsuits that I have started, it is – in my opinion – incompatible for me to continue in my role,” he said in a press release.

“I had to make this painful decision (to resign from USS) in order to focus my time and energy on facing infamous accusations of which I was the object,” he added.

The complaint that opened the edge of “USS” was filed by Socialist MPs Daniel Manouchehri and Daniella Cicardini, who are also the plaintiffs in the “Audio Case”.

“We believe that this should be thoroughly investigated because ultimately we could find ourselves in the presence of hidden profit on the part of this university and secondly there could be some kind of illegal political fundingManouchehri told the radio Cooperative.

The MP claimed that “we see figures like (former minister Andrés) Chadwick; (supreme angel) Vivanco; (former prosecutor Manuel) War; (supreme Jean Pierre) Matthew; (former ministers) Philip Ward and (former presidential candidate and Piñera’s “dolphin”, Sebastián) Sicheland a number of actors who share a name in the Hermosillo case and work on the USS.”

Despite that transversal questions so that he can give an explanation about his real relations with Luis Hermosilla, which even come from some deputies from his own UDI party, accused of trying ‘defend’and after a month and a half without appearing in public – following a formality that left his lawyer and friend in preventive custody – Andrés Chadwick was practically cornered by the team this Thursday 24 hours.

“I told all the media that if I have to speak, “I’m going to call them.”he said shortly.

However, on Friday, Eastern Metropolitan ProsecutorLoren Parrconfirmed that former minister Andrés Chadwick will be called to testify within the “Audio Case”.

“It should be like a defendant. “It’s a restricted area, we’re investigating,” the chaser was quoted as saying. BíoBíoChile.

There he will have to shine a light on a few treatment in which va almost always appears tangential.

The first of these will surely be the call he made Augusto Iglesias, advisor from Financial Market Commission (CMF) and Undersecretary of Social Security under the first Piñero administration to intercede in favor of the corridor the Sauer brotherssuspended by the mentioned organization in March 2023 in the so-called The ‘Facttop’ case.

It was Luis Hermosilla ‘consigliere’ Sauers and it was exactly a conversation between them Ariel Sauer Luis Hermosilla and his associate, a lawyer Leonarda Villalobosin which there was talk of folding a box of money for bribes – and that she recorded it and later gave it to Sauer’s ex-partner, Rodrigo Topelberg – the one who revealed the ‘Audios Case’.

You will also need to explain your connections to the employer. Alvaro Jalaff, who, along with his brother, are designated as the main beneficiaries criminal scheme which Sauer and Topelberg put together with their factoring company “Factop” and the exchange “STF”.

Hermosilla was also Álvaro Jalaff’s “consigliere” and together with Chadwick they had a WhatsApp group called “Amigos”. In a 2018 interview, Hermosilla tells Jalaffa, “You have to cherish your friendship with ACH. This guy is going to be president. Take care of an immense property.” And the following year he wrote to him: “You and ACH are my only brothers.

When Philip Ward took over as Minister of Housing and Urban Planning (Minvu), Hermosilla wrote to Jalaffa that the new minister was “A close friend of ACH”, according to the report Calculator. “He is much closer and admires us,” he added.

Hermosilla and Francisco Feres They then started taking steps to unblock the project “Terrace Group” of Jalaff, called Capital Park, in Minvu, in August 2020. In these conversations, Feres suggested to Hermosille that Chadwick act as minister of faith in dealings with Minister Ward and the metropolitan sers, Manuel José Errazuriz.

Errázuriz confirmed that he had received it direct pressures from Minister Ward. “No one told me to do anything that was not appropriate, but that it was ‘Hurry up, can you please remove quick response'”, Errázuriz stated.

Finally, permits whose approval takes until two years were processed in two and a half months and the real estate project also won 39 million USD thanks to the Piñera government’s program to revitalize the ailing post-pandemic economy.

After the article was published, Minvu ordered a summary and the prosecutor’s office opened an investigation into this new aspect of the ‘Audios case’. Two weeks ago, Felipe Ward introduced his resignation from the position of vice-rector from the University of San Sebastián, Santiago Campus.

Another victim of the “Audio case” is the Minister of the Supreme Court, Jean-Pierre Matus, who is able defendant on the other side of the “Audio Case” for her association with Luis Hermosilla following a complaint filed by a deputy Camila Musante (Indian).

Research site last March Cyprus announced the existence of cottages between the judge and Hermosilla. At the press point, Matus assured that “no WhatsApp of mine exists, because there is none, I deny it. The only thing they (Ciper) do is put a caption so it looks like I have a WhatsApp with Mr. Hermosilla and there is none, and there won’t be any.”

Last month, however, the same media published interviews in which Matuš informed the lawyer about the meeting with the German specialist Kai Bothwho could advise on the defense of the constitutional accusation that, after a social outbreak in 2019, ended with the ouster of the then minister Andrés Chadwick and in which Hermosilla was his defender.

He got Matuš for this work 14 million pesos ($15,000) and in the formalization of Hermosilla, the prosecution revealed that the funds to pay the German lawyer came from no less than accounts of the Sauer brothers.

As if that was not enough, his thanks were also filtered through WhatsApp to Hermosilla for his support in 2021 for his nomination for a member of the Supreme Court.

Finally, Andrés Chadwick must answer whether or not he met Álvaro Jalaff in mid-2017 to get off his hands 150 million pesos (166 thousand USD), destined for the campaign that would bring Piñera to the presidency for the second time.

On August 17 of that year, Jalaff told Hermosilla that he had an “important” topic to discuss with him, that he had met with other business friends—Maurice (Khamis), José Said, and Alberto Kassis—and that “we spend 150, But I want to hand it over to them straight away.”

“Be careful with WhatsApp”, The defense attorney warned him for the first time on that occasion. The next day, he told him to go “to his office at 3300 Apoquindo, 18th floor” around 11.

Although misspelled, the address matches the historical one headquarters Sebastián Piñera and there he was supposed to meet Chadwick. As revealed counter, Everything points to the fact that Álvaro Jalaff attended the meeting, because in the chat he says that he is “fucked up” and even asks Hermosilly about parking.

The investigation will show if the money were delivered or not.