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October 4, 2013

Report: U.S. Officer Wanted in Murders of U.S. Journalist, Student After 1973 Chilean Coup Dies 
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There are reports a former U.S. Navy officer suspected in the killings
of two Americans during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet has died in
Santiago. Believing he was living in Florida, Chile's Supreme Court
approved a request for the extradition of Ray Davis last year so he
could face trial for the 1973 murders of journalist Charles Horman and
student Frank Teruggi in the days after the U.S.-backed coup that ousted
Salvador Allende. At the time, Davis commanded the U.S. military mission
in Chile. But while Chilean authorities sought his extradition, Davis
was reportedly living secretly in Chile. Author Peter Kornbluh told the
Associated Press: "They were working to get Davis extradited and he was
literally less than a couple of miles down the road." A death
certificate says Davis died in Santiago on April 30. The U.S. Embassy
says it found out about Davis' death in May and that it did not know he
was living in Chile. Speaking on Democracy Now! last month around the
40th anniversary of the coup, Charles Horman's widow, Joyce Horman,
described how her husband was brought to Santiago by Davis just days
before he was arrested by Chilean forces and then executed.

Joyce Horman: "He was brought back to Santiago, to the
search-and-destroy mission that was Santiago at that time, by the head
of the U.S. MILGROUP, Military Group, who had come through blockades to
get to Viña del Mar to see his military people in Viña, and then,
because they had asked him if he would give a lift to Charles and Terry
back to Santiago. His name is Ray, Captain Ray Davis, and he is an
extraordinary figure in our story."

Joyce told the Associated Press she wants additional proof from the
United States that Davis is actually dead. "After 40 years, this is
extraordinarily frustrating," she said.

 

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