Bolivia's Attorney General Roger Mariaca arrested over alleged drug-trafficking links
Roger Mariaca, Attorney General of Bolivia, was arrested in Santa Cruz alongside 13 other people on suspicion of links to drug trafficking. The United States had revoked his visa days earlier.
Arrest of Bolivia's Attorney General uncovers alleged criminal network in Public Ministry
Roger Mariaca, Attorney General of Bolivia, was detained on Thursday 1 October in Santa Cruz, accused by the Government of heading a criminal organisation infiltrated within the Public Ministry to protect drug-trafficking activities, according to france24.com. In the same operation, 13 other people linked to the judicial and police systems were arrested.
Government Minister Marco Antonio Oviedo announced that authorities had dismantled an alleged network that would have protected, facilitated and profited from the trafficking of controlled substances. Among those detained are Alberto Zeballos, departmental prosecutor of Santa Cruz; a superior prosecutor; a police major and several Public Ministry officials.
Charges against Mariaca
The Government attributes to the Attorney General alleged crimes of criminal organisation, money laundering and illicit trafficking of controlled substances. These accusations form part of an ongoing investigation and do not constitute a judicial declaration of guilt.
One of the central precedents cited by Bolivian authorities is the case of Sebastián Marset, an alleged Uruguayan drug trafficker captured in Bolivia in March 2026 and subsequently transferred to the United States, where he remains detained awaiting trial.
Oviedo stated that Marset had already been detained in Bolivia in 2023, when Mariaca was serving as departmental prosecutor of Santa Cruz, but that he was released shortly afterwards. The minister claimed that this episode exemplified the alleged functioning of the investigated network and asserted that seized assets had also been returned to the Uruguayan drug trafficker.
The operation came after a video and audio recordings attributed to Marset circulated. According to authorities, in that material the alleged drug trafficker referred to Mariaca as a friend and claimed to have paid 500,000 dollars to remain in Bolivia and continue his operations. The ongoing investigation should clarify the authenticity of those claims and whether Mariaca received that money.
The revocation of the US visa
Three days before the arrest, on Monday 28 September, the US State Department announced the revocation of Mariaca's visa. Washington accused him of accepting bribes to facilitate drug trafficking and of helping violent criminals evade justice. The measure also affected other officials and former officials from Bolivia, Colombia and Peru flagged for alleged corruption or links to illicit activities.
Mariaca rejected the US accusations and characterised the decision as a form of political interference. According to his statements, the measures could be related to the repercussions of some investigations supervised by the Public Ministry, including proceedings against Argentine political consultant Fernando Cerimedo.
Discovery of cash and questioning of procedures
Authorities reported finding a significant amount of cash during proceedings related to Mariaca's residence in Santa Cruz. According to reporting by news agency AP, agents found 3.53 million bolivianos—approximately 294,000 dollars—and another 10,000 dollars in an ambulance leaving the premises.
Oviedo claimed that the money came from alleged extortions from people seeking help from prosecutors. That source constitutes, for now, an accusation by authorities and must be established through the investigation.
The detention also generated questions about the procedure used. Public Ministry officials reported that Mariaca had been arrested unlawfully and initially characterised the episode as "kidnapping". Anti-drugs prosecutor Miguel Gonzales told AP that police had detained the Attorney General without a court order. The legal circumstances of the arrest should be clarified within the framework of the corresponding procedures.
Oviedo also reported on police actions related to people who would have attempted to remove documents from Mariaca's residence.
Institutional crisis in the Public Ministry
Mariaca and Zeballos were transferred to facilities of the anti-drugs force in El Alto, near La Paz. Several Public Ministry offices remained under police guard whilst officials of the institution reported interventions they considered unlawful.
The detention triggered an institutional crisis in Bolivia's Public Ministry. The Public Ministry declared the "permanent absence" of its top authority and appointed Luis Montaño, the senior superior prosecutor, to assume interim leadership of the institution and ensure the continuity of its functions.
The arrest coincides with a rapprochement between Bolivia and Washington in security matters, a context in which the revocation of Mariaca's visa and his subsequent detention acquire an additional diplomatic dimension. Mariaca, for his part, has rejected all accusations and denounced political motivations behind the measures adopted against him.
Source: Google News BO — Crime