Anxiety over immigration and violent crime has carried Jose Antonio Kast to the steps of Chile's presidential palace.

On Sunday, he is tipped to be elected the country's first hard-right leader since dictator Augusto Pinochet three decades ago.

From behind bulletproof glass, Kast has promised to deport hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants, seal the northern border, and declare a state of emergency.

That resonates with Chileans who blame foreign gangs for a surge in organized crime -- a challenge that police tried to tackle in a series of synchronized raids across central Santiago on Thursday.

Shortly after 6:00 pm (2300 GMT), dozens of masked and armed police burst from a 15-strong convoy of unmarked vehicles.

Bang! Bang! Bang! They begin pulverizing the doors of nine suspected d

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