Murder of Anna Cook
Anna Cook | |
|---|---|
| Born | Ana María Villarroel González 5 April 1991 Arica, Chile |
| Died | 2 August 2017 (aged 26) Providencia, Santiago, Chile |
| Occupation | DJ |
Anna Cook, stage name of Ana María Villarroel González (5 April 1991 – 2 August 2017), was a Chilean DJ in the electronic music scene. Her death under unexplained circumstances sparked controversy and social mobilization, particularly within the Chilean LGBT+ community, whose organizations — together with Cook's family — denounced her death as a lesbicide.[1] A 2023 investigative podcast about the case, ¿Quién mató a Anna Cook?, became the most-listened podcast in Chile, and in June 2025 the public prosecutor's office formally closed the investigation without ever charging anyone.[2][3]
Biography
[edit]Born in Arica, Villarroel González lived there until the age of 16. Following the death of her grandmother, she moved to Santiago with her mother, Kattia González.[4] According to friends, she exhibited a masculine gender expression from adolescence and openly identified as a lesbian.[4]
She studied graphic design at the University of Arts, Sciences, and Communication (UNIACC) and later lived in Germany for a year. Upon her return to Chile, she settled in a residence on Tranquila Street in Providencia.[4][5] She developed her artistic career under the pseudonym Anna Cook, performing as a DJ at electronic music events.[4][5][6]
Death
[edit]On 2 August 2017, Cook was admitted without vital signs to Hospital del Salvador by her landlord, Raúl Azócar, who registered her as a Jane Doe ("NN") because he did not know her legal name.[4] She had a cut on her chest and a cervical ecchymosis (neck bruise) measuring 15 cm × 5 cm (5.9 in × 2.0 in).[4] Initial reports cited a history of epilepsy, cocaine use, and depression; however, this information was subsequently disputed by her mother and contradicted by her medical records.[4]
Investigation
[edit]According to the investigation, Cook had spent the previous evening socializing with friends at her residence. Witness statements indicated that Azócar and photographer Matías Troncoso were on the second floor.[4] At 5:00 a.m., her mother received alarming text messages from her daughter's phone.[4] Azócar stated that he found her unconscious hours later and took her to the hospital.[4]
Forensic discrepancies
[edit]The investigation faced heavy criticism from Cook's family and human rights advocates for procedural errors and a perceived lack of diligence.[1] A notable discrepancy arose regarding her injuries: the doctor who first examined her body at the hospital recorded a 15-centimeter (5.9 in) cervical bruise covering almost her entire neck, yet this injury was completely omitted from the official autopsy report conducted by the Legal Medical Service (SML).[1]
The SML report did, however, document five fractured ribs, which investigators claimed occurred during cardiopulmonary resuscitation attempts, a conclusion contested by the family. Because of her public lesbian identity and gender expression, human rights groups and her family maintained that her death was a "lesbicide" (hate-motivated murder of a lesbian), pointing to the presence of semen in her mouth as evidence of sexual assault prior to her death.[1][7]
The first autopsy, performed in August 2018, determined the cause of death to be cardiorespiratory arrest. It also revealed multiple rib fractures and the presence of semen with spermatozoa in her oral cavity.[4] Initial toxicology reports did not detect any drugs.[6] Semen samples were compared with the genetic profiles of three individuals linked to the case, but no matches were found, and the available sample material was depleted.[4]
The investigation revealed inconsistencies in Azócar's statements regarding the presence of Troncoso, whose DNA sample was never collected despite his presence at the scene.[4] CHV also reported that Troncoso was later accused of gender-based violence by a former partner.[4]
An independent expert report identified injuries that were not recorded in the official autopsy report, including the cervical ecchymosis.[4] A second autopsy, performed in October 2019, identified the presence of cannabis, cocaine, zopiclone, and alcohol, suggesting a potential overdose.[4] The prosecutor's office initially ruled out the involvement of third parties, attributing the death to an "overdose without external intervention," and closed the investigation on that basis in 2019.[5][7][8]
In January 2020, the family filed a lawsuit against Azócar and other potential suspects, prompting the reopening of the case under prosecutor Glenis Sánchez.[4]
Closing of the case
[edit]On 13 June 2025, after nearly eight years of investigations during which no suspect was ever formally indicted, the Eastern Metropolitan Prosecutor's Office announced its decision to no perseverar (not to proceed with the prosecution), citing insufficient evidence, and the case was archived.[3][2] At the hearing, Cook's legal team adhered to the prosecutor's decision but warned that the State had failed to fulfil its obligations under the Belém do Pará Convention (the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women); the judge rejected the team's request to hear testimony from Cook's mother.[3]
Troncoso's defense attorney, Joanna Heskia, separately sought a definitive dismissal (sobreseimiento definitivo) for her client — a ruling that would have barred the case against him from ever being reopened. The Eighth Court of Guaranties of Santiago rejected the request on 13 June 2025, and after appealing, the defense withdrew the appeal in August 2025. Heskia explained the withdrawal by stating that the June resolution had already made clear that Cook was not the victim of a homicide and that her client had no involvement in the death.[2]
Social impact
[edit]In September 2019, Cook's mother went public with details of the case, alleging procedural irregularities.[5][4] Her legal defense criticized the decision to conduct a standard autopsy despite the highly suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.[6][4] The "Justicia para Anna Cook" ("Justice for Anna Cook") movement formed that same year.[7]
On 8 March 2020, the Delight Lab art collective projected the question "¿Quién mató a Anna Cook?" ("Who killed Anna Cook?") onto the Torre Telefónica in Santiago.[4][9] The phrase subsequently became a rallying slogan painted across public spaces in the city.[4]
Podcast controversy
[edit]In June 2023, Podium Podcast — part of Prisa Media Chile — released ¿Quién mató a Anna Cook?, an 11-part investigative podcast written by journalist Rodrigo Fluxá and directed by Trinidad Piriz, which published weekly episodes until its finale on 19 July 2023.[10][11] It quickly became the most listened-to podcast in Chile.[12][13] Its conclusion — that Cook's death had not been a homophobic hate crime — divided the Chilean public and angered those who had long denounced the case as a lesbicide.[11] The production was later recognized with the award for Best Script (Mejor Guion) at the 2024 Premios Ondas Globales.[14]
The "Justicia para Anna Cook" collective, alongside her mother Kattia González and attorneys Karinna Fernández and Pía Corbalán, issued a public statement strongly criticizing the production.[15] They accused the journalists of sensationalism, of treating the case like a commercial "Netflix-style" series, and of downplaying her lesbian identity.[15] Furthermore, they alleged that the production team reneged on an agreement to share newly uncovered evidence with the family and the legal prosecution, instead prioritizing profits and commercial entertainment over justice.[15][12] The production team rejected the accusations and maintained that the family had always been informed of the scope of the journalistic work; El Mostrador subsequently appended a note to its report acknowledging that the original version had not included the producers' response.[12]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 "Tres años de la muerte de la artista Anna Cook: su madre denuncia lesbicidio y activistas exigen justicia" [Three years after the death of artist Anna Cook: her mother denounces the murder of lesbians and activists demand justice]. Agencia Presentes (in Spanish). 2 August 2020. Archived from the original on 8 November 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2026.
- 1 2 3 Andrews, Juan Pablo (6 August 2025). "Caso Ana Cook: el frustrado intento de uno de los investigados por conseguir su sobreseimiento definitivo". La Tercera (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 "A ocho años de la enigmática muerte de Anna Cook Fiscalía archiva el caso sin responsables: Ministerio Público comunicó decisión de no perseverar". The Clinic (in Spanish). 13 June 2025. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Paula Lepe (2 August 2020). "La enigmática muerte de Anna Cook, la DJ lesbiana por quien su madre pide justicia". CHV Noticias (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- 1 2 3 4 María José Villarroel (27 September 2019). "Madre clama justicia por violación y crimen de su hija DJ". BioBioChile (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- 1 2 3 "Cuando muere una lesbiana: la búsqueda de justicia para Nicole Saavedra y Anna Cook". The Clinic (in Spanish). 16 October 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- 1 2 3 "¿Quién mató a Anna Cook? El asesinato de la joven lesbiana sin resolver". LOS40 Chile (in Spanish). 2 June 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- ↑ "A tres años del lesbicidio de Anna Cook". El Mostrador (in Spanish). 3 August 2020. Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- ↑ "El caso de Anna Cook en el mes de la visibilidad lésbica". University of Chile (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
- ↑ Quililongo, Pascale (5 June 2023). "«¿Quién mató a Anna Cook?»: El podcast escrito por Rodrigo Fluxá que busca resolver el caso policial". LOS40 Chile (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- 1 2 "No fue crimen de odio sino suicidio: el 'podcast' sobre la muerte de Anna Cook que divide a Chile". El País (in Spanish). 24 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Lanzan duras críticas contra realizadores de podcast sobre Anna Cook". El Mostrador (in Spanish). 19 June 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- ↑ Quililongo, Pascale (12 June 2023). "«¿Quién mató a Anna Cook?»: El podcast documental que está #1 en Spotify de Chile". LOS40 Chile (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- ↑ "La llegada a nuevas audiencias a través del podcast ¿Quién mató a Anna Cook?". Revista Universitaria (in Spanish). Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Madre de Anna Cook, abogadas y Red Justicia para Anna Cook critican podcast sensacionalista de Rodrigo Fluxá". La Zarzamora (in Spanish). 16 June 2023. Archived from the original on 19 January 2026. Retrieved 20 June 2026.