Bolivia's Attorney General detained for allegedly protecting drug traffickers in operation backed by DEA
Bolivia's police arrested Attorney General Roger Mariaca and 13 other officials accused of protecting drug traffickers. The operation received support from the US DEA.
Arrest of Attorney General Roger Mariaca shakes Bolivia's Public Ministry
Bolivia's police detained Attorney General Roger Mariaca along with 13 other officials in a raid against a criminal organisation that allegedly protected drug traffickers, according to a statement by the Bolivian government on Thursday. The operation was backed by the US drug enforcement agency DEA and other international bodies, though it was carried out by Bolivian officers.
"A criminal organisation entrenched in the judiciary and the administration of a very important institution in our country, the Public Ministry, has been dismantled. This organisation, led by Roger Mariaca, became a criminal organisation aimed at protecting and encouraging narco-terrorism in the country," said Government Minister Marco Antonio Oviedo at a press conference.
According to latimes.com, the operation seized money that was being transported in an ambulance leaving Mariaca's home. Prosecutor Daniel Ortuño stated that agents found 3.53 million bolivianos—approximately 294,000 dollars—plus an additional 10,000 dollars in cash inside the vehicle.
Accusations and background
Mariaca will face charges for allegedly being part of a criminal organisation, laundering illicit proceeds, and drug trafficking. Four members of the Public Ministry were also detained in the operation, accompanied by Oviedo alongside his colleagues from Defence, Ernesto Justiniano, and the Presidency, Fernando Aramayo.
The minister recalled that in 2023, when Mariaca was serving as regional prosecutor in Santa Cruz, authorities arrested—and later quickly released—alleged Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset. "They let him go and, not only that, they returned the seized assets to him," Oviedo said. Marset was captured again in Bolivia in March this year and extradited to the United States to face charges for money laundering.
Visa revocation and Washington's backing
The action came days after the United States revoked the visa of Mariaca and 11 other people—including judges, police and former Bolivian authorities—with the aim of "fulfilling commitments to defend democratic governance throughout our hemisphere against corruption and drug trafficking," according to the State Department.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated on his X account that the Trump administration firmly supports Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz "as he takes strong and decisive measures to combat drug trafficking, systemic corruption and transnational organised crime in Bolivia". Rubio added that Bolivia's actions "demonstrate the kind of leadership needed to make our hemisphere a safer, stronger and more prosperous place".
Mariaca's reaction before his arrest
On Monday, before being detained, Mariaca had rejected the visa revocation and stated that he would continue investigating cases that generated "discomfort" for the government, including the arrest in August of Argentine political consultant Fernando Cerimero for the alleged attempted femicide of his ex-partner and alleged illicit enrichment. Cerimero was a campaign adviser to both President Paz and Argentine president Javier Milei.
Accompanied by several prosecutors, Mariaca stated that he could not accept his work and image being put "in doubt by decisions or statements coming from abroad... without the possibility that the facts be clarified in the corresponding instances".
Political context
Mariaca was appointed Attorney General in 2024 with the backing of more than two-thirds of the Legislative Assembly, then dominated by the Movement towards Socialism (MAS), a left-wing party that governed Bolivia for nearly 20 years.
President Paz took office in November last year and reoriented the country's foreign policy towards Washington. Bolivia also joined the so-called Shield of the Americas, a US initiative to combat drug cartels and organised crime.
The National Assembly is scheduled to debate on Friday the appointment of a new Attorney General.
Source: Google News BO — Crime