Court approves sentence of 3 years and one day for Schaefer tortures at former Colonia Dignidad

SANTIAGO.-  Santiago´s Ninth Court of Appeals has ratified the sentence given to Paul Schaefer Schneider following an investigation into tortures and serious injuries of seven German citizens living in the former Colonia Dignidad.

A unanimous ruling issued by Ministers Dobra Lusic, Mario Rojas and Attorney Claudia Caimovich approved the decision made by Visiting Minister Jorge Zepeda Arancibia, who had sentenced Schaefer to three years and one day of prison without parole on he 26th of March of this year, for crimes of serious injury to members of the commune. 

Those who received serious injuries were Jürgen Szurgelies, Horst Schaffrik Bruckmann y Gerd Schaffrik Bruckmann, while Gudrun Wagner, Waltraub Schaak, Wolfgang Müller Ahrend, Hans Peter Schaffrik y Günter Schaffrik received minor injuries.

The offenses, which are considered to be crimes against humanity, were related to the administration of psychotropic medicine and electroshock therapy that Schaefer had ordered to be practiced on the victims, who were at the hospital within the commune between 1970 and 1980.