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Chile
Index
The Investigations Police, numbering about 4,000, is a
plainclothes civilian agency engaged primarily in the
detection and
investigation of crime. Headquartered in Santiago, the
force has
seven substations in other parts of Chile. It functions
throughout
the country in support of the Carabineros. Operationally,
its chain
of command runs from the director general through a deputy
director
to the inspectors in charge of the provincial substations.
Functionally, it is divided into a number of departments,
including
administration, foreign and internal police, health,
justice,
personnel, and welfare. The force also includes the Air
Police
Brigade, responsible for airport surveillance; the
National
Identification Bureau, which keeps records of all adult
citizens
and foreign residents and issues identification cards that
must be
carried at all times; and the Forensic Medicine
Laboratory. In
addition, the Special Units Prefecture comprises six
brigades
dealing with fraud, murder, robberies, vehicle theft,
vice, and
women's affairs.
The Investigations Police functions in close
collaboration with
the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)
and with
the intelligence services of the army, navy, and air
force. During
the military government, some Investigations Police agents
became
involved in criminal activities. By early 1992, its new
director,
HorĂ¡cio Toro, a retired army general appointed by the
Aylwin
government, had withdrawn more than 200 officers from duty
because
of their alleged involvement in drug trafficking.
Data as of March 1994
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