Man seen on video shooting at Chilean protesters once ran for office in South Carolina
Videos from the scene on a street in Chile show John Corbin firing a gun from beside his truck as protesters throw what appear to be rocks and bottles at him.
Protests in Chile have been going on for three weeks, sparked by a subway fare hike but morphing into broader complaints about inequity in the South American county, The New York Times reports. Five people have been killed by police or military during the protests, according to the newspaper.
Corbin is a one-time Libertarian candidate for the U.S. House in South Carolina. He ran for the 4th Congressional District of South Carolina in 2006 while living in Greenville, describing himself as a “pro-life Libertarian,” according to his archived website with the Library of Congress.
The Washington Post said Corbin “participated in the League of the South, a neo-Confederate hate group” in South Carolina before his failed congressional campaign.
“Days before the (2006) election, he was arrested on charges of domestic violence,” The Post reported.
Corbin moved to Chile in 1996 and became a “prolific conservative commentator,” The Post reported.
Corbin began a livestream, now posted to his YouTube channel, as police were at his home in Reñaca, Chile, to arrest him.
“I did not do anything wrong. I legally had the right to carry that gun with me, and I was in my car and they attacked me, while I was in my car I loaded the gun, after that I was in fear for my life, being attacked by a violent mob,” he said in the video.
“Apparently there was an innocent victim who was struck in the thigh and that’s the main reason that I have to go to the police station now,” he said.
One protester shared a video on Twitter of Corbin passing through a group of people on the street. She said they “were playing: ‘He who dances, passes.’ The driver in the 1st car, leaves his car, dances, and returns to his car. Right after he drives away, John Cobin drives through the crowd. Nobody attacked his car. He stopped further away and started shooting at people.”
Chilean Twitter users called Corbin a “terrorist” and “white supremacist,” and shared photos over the platform that appear to show the American with Confederate flags.
