By Erik Lopez SANTIAGO, July 17 (Reuters) - A Chilean judge on Thursday indicted a deputy of former dictator Augusto Pinochet and two others over the disappearance of five leftists believed murdered and hurled into the ocean from a helicopter. They were the last people known to have disappeared at the hands of the 1973-90 dictatorship. Magistrate Mario Carroza indicted ex-deputy army commander and junta member Santiago Sinclair, former army secret intelligence service head Hugo Prado, and actively serving Colonel Marcelo Bustos, over the disappearances. The attorney of the families of the victims, who were kidnapped in 1987, hailed the decision, saying it recognized the responsibility of commanding officers and not just those who carried out the orders. "This news is reason for satisfaction," said Attorney Nelson Caucoto. "Magistrate Carroza has advanced now in terms of the hierarchy, and those higher up will have to pay." The trio are entitled to appeal the ruling. They were not immediately available for comment. "Basically Mr Sinclair and Mr Prado are involved because of their responsibilities of command at that time. Colonel Bustos served with the military intelligence service," Carroza said. Pinochet, who died in 2006, never faced a full trial for crimes committed during his 17-year dictatorship, when the government killed about 3,000 people and tortured another 28,000 -- most of them suspected leftists. President Michelle Bachelet and her mother were among those tortured. About 200,000 people fled into exile during the Pinochet years. Rights groups and the relatives of the dictatorship's victims say Chile's wheels of justice are turning too slowly, and have accused the armed forces of shielding their own. Only about 24 security officials have been convicted of crimes, nearly two decades after the dictatorship ended, while nearly 500 are under investigation. (Writing by Lisa Yulkowski. Editing by Simon Gardner and Patricia Zengerle)
The Llaima volcano spews lava near Cherquenco town July 10, 2008. Chile declared a red alert around the Llaima volcano on July 4, just days after it spewed lava down one ...
