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Chilean Judge Bars Extradition in Letelier Case. Ajwillalles A Chilean Judge Bars Extradition In Letelier Case. AjWillalles A. Krause cWallington Poi! Foreign Sarno SANTIAGO. Chile, May 14—The president of Chile's Supreme Court, refused today to order the extradition to convict three Cubans for their role of three Chilean military officers In killing Letelier, once defense minis• whom the United States wants to put ter in the leftist government of Salva- on trial for the assassination of Chi- dor Allende, and Ronni Moffitt, who lean exile leader Orlando Letelier and was riding in Letelier's car when it an American aide in 1976. was destroyed by a bomb in Septem- The United States is expected to re- ber 1976. call Ambassador George W. Landau to The evidence centered largely on protest the decision by Supreme the testimony of Michael Townley, Court President Israel Borquez. It is who admitted organizing and carrying considered likely to damage the al- out the assassination and who said ready strained relations between the Letelier's death had been ordered by Carter administration and the mili- C,,en. Contreras, then the head of tary government of Gen. Augusta Pi- -Chile-'s secret police, known as DINA, nochet. and by Espinoza, then a high ranking The likelihood of the three officers DINA official. Fernandez Larios, ac- going on trial here seems small. cording to Townley, had helped plan the assassination. In his ruling. Borquez said he will send his written decision to a military In his 46-page opinion, Borquez said court in Santiago, which could decide to initiate proceedings against the three officers without wailing for in- Townley's accusations against the structions from the civilian Supreme Iey's getting less than four years in Court. He said he would not himself three officers could not be considered jail for his role in killing Letelier and order the three officers tried in Chile. impartial because Townley had-made Moffit, was "a monstrosity." Asked Alfredo Etcheberry, a Chilean law- a deal with U.S. prosecutors to cooper whether he thought Townley, an yer who represented the U.S. Justice ate with their investigation of the American citizen who has said he Department during the extradition Letelier murder in return for a re- proceedings, said the judge's ruling hopes to return to Chile, should be al- was "unsatisfactory" and added that duced sentence. lowed to return, Contreras said: "One he was "disappointed." While such deals are common in the more undesirable in Chile is not nec- Etcheberry said he will appeal Bor. United States, they are not used in essary." quez' ruling to the full Supreme Chile. Court, which could overrule Borquez In Washington, American officials Borquez also ruled that photo- said they were not surprised by Bor- and order the three officers—Gen. graphs, a movie and other evidence Juan Manuel Contreras Sepulveda, • presented by the United States—.and quez' ruling. See LETELIER, M, Col. 2 acceptable in U.S. court proceedings— Assistant U.S. Attorney E. Law- were inadmissable under Chilean pro- rence Barcella Jr. said he was "disap- cedures. Therefore, he ruled they pointed" because the United States could not be considered as evidence against Contreras, Espinoza and Fer- had presented nearly 700 pages of in- nandex Larios, who have been de- formation documenting the case LETELIER, From Al tained in a military hospital here against the Chileans. since September, when the United Michael Moffit whose wife, Ronni, Col. Pedro Espinoza and Capt. Ar- States first asked for their extradi- was slain with Letelier said the deci- mando Fernandez Larios—estradited tion. sion was what he had expected. or tried here. Borquez released copies of his opin- Noting that Borquez was appointed Most observers here though it un- ion this morning after it was read to Contreras, Espinoza and Fernandez by Pinochet, Mount said. "I don't likely, however, that the military Larios during a 11/2-hour proeeedig court would act on its own. Etche- think any decision reached by the Chi- in Chile's Supreme Court building in lean Supreme Court since the military berry said that a military trial would downtown Santiago. be "unsatisfactory from the U.S. point dictatorship took over could be con- of view." Contreras said afterward that he "expected a decision like this" and sidered fair and impartial." U.S. officials here and in Washing- that he was satisfied that Borquez had Moffit and Letelier's widow, Isabel, ton had never really expected Bor- done a "professional" job in weighing called for the immediate severing of quez to order the three officers extra- the evidence. Contreras, who was a dited to stand trial in thg United "all diplomatic, commercial and finan- close confidant of Pinochet's until he cial ties with Chile." States. But it had been hoped that the was named in the Letelier case, said Supreme Court president would order he thought Townley's deal with U.S. Karen DeYoung and Kenneth Rrede- a trial in Chile based on the same evi- prosecutors, which resulted in Town. dence that a federal court jury in meier contributed to this report. Washington found persuasive enough .
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