SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Chile has sentenced eight former secret police officers for the disappearance of five Uruguayans during the 1973-1990 military dictatorship.

Judge Joaquin Billard's ruling was published yesterday by the judiciary website. It said the Uruguayans were captured and held in military barracks between September and December 1973, shortly after Gen Augusto Pinochet seized power in a bloody coup.

Manuel Contreras, the former chief of Chile's secret police, received 10 years' imprisonment for the kidnappings of Julio Cesar Fernandez and Nelsa Zulema Gadea Galan. The fate of the disappeared Uruguayans is unknown.

Contreras is already serving combined sentences of more than 100 years for other kidnappings and murders during the Pinochet years.

In this week's sentencing, another seven former agents received prison terms ranging from six to 10 years.