Chilean court releases Pinochet's family on bail

SANTIAGO, Chile - The wife and children of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet were freed on bail today, a day after being arrested on charges of tax fraud related to multimillion dollar foreign bank accounts.

The Santiago court of appeals approved bail for Pinochet's wife Lucia Hiriart, his youngest son Marco Antonio, and his daughters Jacqueline and Veronica.

Pinochet's eldest son Augusto was released on Monday, hours after being arrested on charges of falsification of documents related to a fraud and tax evasion investigation involving millions of dollars in over 100 secret, foreign bank accounts.

A fifth child, Pinochet's eldest daughter Lucia, was still unaccounted for on Tuesday after failing to answer a court subpoena to answer questions about nearly US$1 million ($1.47 million) in undeclared taxes.

Pinochet, 90, ruled Chile for 17 years after he took power in a 1973 military coup that toppled Salvador Allende. He has been accused of responsibility in the deaths of as many as 3000 Chileans during his regime between 1973 and 1990, and in tens of thousands of torture cases.

- REUTERS