SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) 鈥 Chile announced Friday that one of the suspects wanted in the kidnapping and killing of a dissident Venezuelan soldier on Chilean soil early this year has been arrested in Costa Rica.
The slaying in February caused shock in Chile, where Ronald Ojeda, a former lieutenant and self-described political prisoner, had sought asylum after protesting against Venezuelan President Nicol谩s Maduro.
鈥淚t's an important step,鈥 Chilean Interior Minister Carolina Toh谩 wrote on the social media platform X of Friday's arrest, promising that Chile would "continue making every effort to clarify the case and ensure that those responsible face justice.鈥
The killing has strained relations between the South American nations. Chilean authorities have suggested Venezuelan officials orchestrated Ojeda's capture, sparking fears that Maduro's government had opened a new front in . Venezuela has denied involvement.
The development comes at a sensitive time for Maduro, who is .
The Chilean prosecutor's office identified the detained suspect as Venezuelan national Maickel Villegas Rodr铆guez, saying that Costa Rican police picked him up as he tried to cross the border into Panama via bus.
Chile said Costa Rica was acting on an Interpol notice filed against Villegas earlier this year. Interpol declined to comment on the arrest and referred questions to Costa Rica鈥檚 government, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The prosecutor, H茅ctor Barros, accused Villegas of surveilling Ojeda's house before his abduction and 鈥減roviding cover鈥 to the other alleged assailants.
In March, Chile issued arrest warrants for both Villegas and another Venezuelan, 28-year-old Walter Rodr铆guez P茅rez, who authorities believe has since taken refuge in Venezuela. In Chile, meanwhile, police have detained a 17-year-old Venezuelan in connection with the case.
Chile has requested to prosecute Villegas in absentia, Barros added, and plans to pursue extradition.
鈥淗e was one of the first suspects identified by the police teams,鈥 Barros said of Villegas, describing him as a legal resident and employee at a package delivery company who had never drawn the attention of law enforcement.
Authorities said he fled the country three days after Ojeda鈥檚 abduction.
Earlier this year, Chilean prosecutors implicated Venezuela鈥檚 , in the kidnapping and killing of the 32-year-old Ojeda.
But the gang never made a ransom demand and officials say Ojeda was killed just hours after being kidnapped, leading Chilean authorities to probe the possibility that the assailants acted out of political motives.
After 10 days of feverish searching, Chilean authorities found Ojeda's body squeezed into a suitcase, buried a meter (three feet) beneath a building in a poor neighborhood of Santiago, sprinkled with white lime to hasten decomposition. Cement had been poured over the suitcase.
