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| Estrella Dinamarca: Where Is the Chilean Jewellery Dealer From Netflix’s High End Now? |
Estrella Dinamarca became one of the most talked-about figures in Chile’s Caso Relojes investigation, a major case involving allegations of stolen luxury watches, jewellery trafficking and an extensive resale network. Once known for running a jewellery business in Santiago, she found herself at the centre of an investigation that attracted considerable public attention. Now, Netflix’s documentary High End: The Watch Theft Ring, originally titled Alta gama: El caso relojes, brings her story back into focus through her first interview since her prosecution. But where is Estrella Dinamarca today, and what happened to the woman investigators accused of playing a significant role in the operation?
Estrella’s story did not begin with luxury watches, expensive jewellery or wealthy customers. Growing up in Malloa, Chile, she remembered her childhood as a happy one, although her family life eventually took a difficult turn. Her mother was Roman Catholic, while her Romanian father came from a rather different background. Estrella recalled being fascinated by him, particularly his unusual tricks, including allegedly making wine appear from trees. It certainly sounds like the sort of childhood memory that would make an interesting dinner conversation.
However, her father's eventual departure left Estrella and her mother feeling abandoned. According to her account, the experience shaped her outlook on relationships, leading her to decide that she would never depend financially on another man. Eventually, she moved to Santiago with her young daughter, Carla Venegas, determined to build a more independent life.
Her introduction to the jewellery business came through a surprisingly ordinary setting: her daughter's school. During one of Carla's school functions, Estrella suggested making necklaces featuring children's names. The idea proved popular, with pupils from the school and neighbouring establishments placing orders. What started as a small creative project quickly developed into something considerably bigger. Rather than waiting for a traditional business opportunity to appear, she had found a way to turn a simple idea into a source of income.
As demand grew, Estrella gradually expanded her activities and eventually established a shop called Galería Santo Domingo. Initially, the business focused on straightforward buying and selling. However, according to her documentary interview, her reputation for understanding jewellery began attracting customers from rather less conventional backgrounds.
She claimed that small-time thieves and criminals started approaching her to sell jewellery and other valuable pieces. Her business connections subsequently became an important part of her story, although her professional activities also brought legal trouble. In 2003, Estrella was convicted of receiving stolen property, followed by another conviction in 2006 for being an accomplice to robbery. She spent approximately a year in prison.
Interestingly, Estrella described her time behind bars as a turning point in her business connections. She claimed that prison introduced her to people who eventually helped expand her network, while her clientele gradually became wealthier and more influential. It was also through these connections that she said she became acquainted with Marco Antonio López, better known as Parived.
Their alleged business relationship would later become an important part of the Caso Relojes investigation. Estrella's account in the documentary offers her interpretation of how those connections developed, although the wider allegations surrounding the network remain a matter of legal scrutiny.
Her name became particularly significant after an incident at Santiago Airport in 2017. Estrella recalled returning from what she described as one of her holidays, although she suggested these trips were essentially business journeys. During the airport encounter, authorities reportedly discovered that she had concealed substantial quantities of jewellery across five or six bags, with the items distributed in different locations.
According to Estrella, she managed to speak with officials and avoided being charged at that particular moment. However, the incident would eventually become an important starting point for the investigation that followed. What might have seemed like another airport encounter at the time would have much bigger consequences for her future.
Investigators subsequently monitored her telephone conversations as they attempted to establish how the suspected network operated. Those recordings became part of the wider evidence used to examine relationships between individuals involved in the luxury goods trade.
Estrella also made allegations about Parived's financial dealings. In her interview, she claimed that he had issued cheques that were not honoured, using both his own name and that of his wife, television personality Tonka Tomicic. These claims form part of Estrella's account of their business relationship and should not be confused with independently established findings.
The investigation eventually reached a major turning point in January 2023, when police conducted coordinated searches at 36 properties. Estrella's property was among those targeted as authorities moved to investigate the suspected network and gather additional evidence.
In February 2023, she was formally charged with several alleged offences, including money laundering, illicit association, smuggling, receiving stolen goods, customs-related offences and tax violations. Prosecutors accused her of helping move stolen luxury watches and jewellery from the United States and Europe into Chile, where the pieces could be sold through resale channels.
Investigators also alleged that jewellery was sent to other professionals to be modified or melted down, making it more difficult to establish where the original pieces had come from. It was a complicated operation involving valuable merchandise, international connections and numerous intermediaries. Naturally, that brought considerable attention to the people suspected of facilitating it.
Despite the accusations, Estrella's legal representatives rejected the suggestion that she was the mastermind behind a major criminal organisation or carried the level of responsibility attributed to her by investigators. Her defence challenged the portrayal of her role, arguing against the idea that she controlled the entire operation.
So, where is Estrella Dinamarca now? According to the account presented in Netflix's documentary, she remains caught up in legal proceedings and has described her situation as unresolved. She has also suggested that she may be subject to probation arrangements. However, the precise terms of her current legal position and any final outcome should not be assumed without an updated official court record.
Estrella has largely kept a low public profile following the investigation, although her appearance in High End: The Watch Theft Ring has brought renewed attention to her circumstances. She believes she was treated unfairly during the legal process and does not consider the level of responsibility attributed to her entirely justified.
She has also acknowledged that she is not a perfect victim, while maintaining that other people involved in the wider network should have faced greater scrutiny. In her view, the aftermath of Caso Relojes did not distribute accountability fairly.
There is something particularly revealing about Estrella Dinamarca's journey from making personalised necklaces for schoolchildren to becoming a central figure in one of Chile's most closely watched luxury goods investigations. Her story involves ambition, business connections, previous convictions and allegations that eventually attracted national attention. Yet, the documentary also reminds viewers that a person's account of events is not necessarily the same as a court's findings.
In my opinion, Estrella is one of the most interesting people featured in High End, largely because her background makes the case more complicated than a straightforward story about expensive watches going missing. Her journey into jewellery began with a genuinely simple business idea, which makes the later allegations all the more striking. What stands out, however, is the difference between how she describes her professional relationships and how investigators viewed them.
Of course, appearing in a documentary gives someone an opportunity to explain their side, but it does not automatically settle questions of responsibility. Her comments about Parived and the wider network also raise interesting questions about who benefited from the business and who ultimately carried the consequences. Still, until the legal picture becomes clearer, viewers should approach every claim with a little caution.
Ultimately, Estrella Dinamarca's present circumstances remain tied to the legal aftermath of Caso Relojes, rather than a confirmed return to the jewellery business or a clearly documented new career. Her interview offers a rare opportunity to hear her perspective, but several questions surrounding the investigation remain open. Did she play the role investigators alleged, or was her involvement more limited than the public narrative suggested? Netflix gives viewers plenty to consider, and we'd be interested to hear what you think about Estrella's account and her place in the case.