Thousands of Chilean children were 'stolen from their mothers and trafficked to the US, UK and other

Thousands of Chilean children were 'stolen from their mothers and trafficked to the US, UK and other Western nations for adoption' during the Pinochet dictatorship, investigators say

By SARA MALM FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 07:03 EST, 2 January 2019 | UPDATED: 11:42 EST, 2 January 2019

Up to 8,000 children were stolen from their mothers to be adopted by foreign couples during Chile’s military dictatorship years, investigators claim.

Some 20,000 Chilean children were adopted to Western nations such as the U.S., the UK and Sweden, in the 1970s and 80s, of which the government believe a majority were illegally removed from their biological families.

A government investigation launched earlier this year has so far found that more than 3,205 babies and young children are likely to have been stolen, but this is expected to multiply as it continues.

. . .

‘No similar crime has ever been investigated in Chile, neither by the courts of by police. The kind of crime which are closest to this are investigations linked to crimes against human rights in a political violence context.’

More:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6504503/Thousands-Chilean-children-stolen-mothers-adopted-UK-Sweden.html