18 Members of Radical Mapuche Group Sentenced to Over 1,000 Combined Years for 2022 Mill Arson Attack

A Chilean tribunal sentenced 18 members of the radical group Resistencia Mapuche Lafkenche (RML) — 15 adults and 3 minors — to combined prison terms exceeding 1,000 years for the August 2022 armed attack and arson on the Molino Grollmus industrial mill complex in Contulmo, Biobío region. Five ringleaders received individual sentences above 80 years each; the tribunal found them guilty of arson, armed robbery, attempted qualified homicide and illegal possession of ammunition. The three convicted minors received 10 years and one day in juvenile detention. The ruling is among the harshest yet against the newer generation of armed Mapuche groups operating in the Araucanía–Biobío Southern Macrozone.