Pinochet under house arrest in torture claims

SANTIAGO, Chile – Former dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet was put under house arrest Monday for his indictment on torture charges stemming from abuses at a secret jail where President Michelle Bachelet and her mother were once held, the judge handling the case said.

Two Chilean court officials formally notified Pinochet at his suburban mansion of the decision by Judge Alejandro Solis to charge him Friday in one homicide, 35 kidnappings and 24 cases of torture.

A lawyer for relatives of victims earlier reported the indictment tied to events at Villa Grimaldi, one of the most infamous detention centers in the early years of Pinochet’s 1973-90 dictatorship.

Pinochet has been indicted four times before – three on human rights charges and one for tax evasion – and three times was held under house arrest, but this is the first time he has faced torture charges.