The eldest daughter of former Chilean military leader Augusto Pinochet was arrested Saturday to face tax evasion charges, after dropping her bid for political asylum in the United States.

Lucia Pinochet Hiriart was detained following her arrival in Chile's capital, Santiago, where she was met by a federal judge who served her notice of tax evasion and passport falsification charges against her.

Pinochet Hiriart left Chile for neighboring Argentina by car on Jan. 22, a day before her mother and four siblings were arrested on charges of tax evasion and fraud.

She then flew to Washington and requested political asylum there. After she surprisingly abandoned her asylum bid on Friday, U.S. officials ordered her to return to Argentina, the last country she was in before she arrived in Washington.

Pinochet Hiriart has been charged in Chile with tax fraud related to about one million dollars in undeclared taxes and using false passports.

Her father is charged with tax evasion related to his secret multimillion-dollar accounts abroad, and with human rights abuses during his 1973-1990 rule.

Source: Xinhua