A 22-year-old man accused of sexually abusing dogs in Tomé disappeared from a medical facility on Wednesday, according to reports from biobiochile.cl.
The suspect, who was arrested on April 10, escaped before receiving the psychiatric evaluation ordered by a judge. Animal rights organizations in the Bío Bío region are now on high alert following his disappearance.
Local authorities confirmed the loss of contact with the individual. Patricio Martínez, the legal director for the Tomé municipality, stated that the town lacks specific details regarding the escape.
“After being sent to the facilities of the Tomé Hospital, the subject has been lost, a matter we deeply regret as a municipality,” Martínez told biobiochile.cl.
Legal proceedings and municipal response
Martínez clarified that the municipality does not have the authority to revoke the man's provisional liberty. He noted that such a request must come from the Public Prosecutor's Office once the criminal investigation is formalized.
“It is important to note that the loss of the defendant's provisional liberty is the responsibility of the Public Prosecutor's Office, which must request it once the criminal investigation is formalized, a matter that falls outside municipal competencies,” Martínez added.
The municipality reported that it submitted all relevant local records to investigators last week. The goal is to provide the prosecutor with enough evidence to request formal charges and appropriate precautionary measures.
During the detention control hearing on April 10, a judge had ordered the Guillermo Grant Benavente Hospital to manage the man's administrative admission to the emergency mental health unit. This measure was intended as a way to ensure legal guarantees were met during the investigation.
While the man was not officially under arrest at the time of the hospital transfer, the court-ordered psychiatric intake was a key component of his legal processing. Local media outlets were unable to confirm if the transfer to the Regional Hospital had been successfully completed before the man vanished.
