President of Chile denies sexual harassment complaint

“The president categorically rejects and denies the complaint,” lawyer Jonatan Valenzuela said in a statement, referring to an alleged event in 2013.

The complaint was filed on September 6 at the local prosecutor’s office in Magallanes, in the far south of Chile, where Boric comes from.

Cristian Crisosto, head of the Public Prosecution Service of Magallanes, confirmed that “a criminal case related to the mentioned facts is ongoing,” adding that there was a special team at the agency investigating the complaint.

According to Valenzuela, the complaint was filed by a woman who at the time sent Boric 25 emails that were “unsolicited and without mutual consent,” including one with explicit images.

More than a decade later, the woman “filed a complaint against current President Gabriel Boric without any basis.”

Boric, now 38, was 27 at the time and had just completed his law degree.

“My client has never had an emotional relationship or friendship with her and they have not communicated since July 2014,” Valenzuela added.

The accusation against Boric comes as his government faces a separate sex abuse scandal after former crime czar and former deputy interior minister Manuel Monsalve was arrested this month on suspicion of raping his subordinate.

Boric, who will not be eligible for re-election after his four-year presidential term ends in 2026, has special immunity and must first be subjected to an impeachment trial by the Justice Department before a formal investigation.