Bolivia's Attorney General Roger Mariaca detained over drug-trafficking links
Bolivia's Legislative Assembly debates the removal of Attorney General Roger Mariaca, arrested over alleged ties to organised crime and drug trafficking.
Bolivian Assembly debates removing jailed Attorney General over drug trafficking
Bolivia's Legislative Assembly will decide on Friday the fate of Attorney General Roger Mariaca, detained for allegedly favouring drug trafficking, according to apnews.com. His arrest has triggered a political and judicial crisis in the country, exacerbated by growing social unrest over economic deterioration.
Mariaca spent the night in a police cell in El Alto awaiting a hearing in which a judge will determine whether he remains in preventive detention whilst being investigated for criminal organisation and illicit enrichment. The Attorney General did not resign following his arrest.
Senators and deputies analysed evidence and debated between removing the official or designating an interim replacement. Authorities also disavowed fiscal Luis Montaño, whom they accused of "usurping functions" after he proclaimed himself Attorney General, stated presidential spokesperson José Luis Gálvez.
In the early hours of Friday, police raided Mariaca's residences and detained his aide with one million bolivianos in cash. The previous day, officers seized 3.5 million bolivianos and approximately 10,000 dollars that were being withdrawn from the Attorney General's residence in an ambulance, according to police reports.
"We have dismantled a criminal structure that was led by Mariaca," declared Government Minister Marco Antonio Oviedo during the legislative session.
Mariaca was detained two days after the United States State Department revoked his visa, accusing him of "receiving bribes to favour drug trafficking". Other senior judicial officials were also arrested as part of the operation.
The action was backed by the Shield of the Americas, the continental alliance of right-wing governments led by president Donald Trump, which in a joint statement supported the government of president Rodrigo Paz "for its decisive actions to confront drug trafficking, combat corruption and hold accountable those who facilitate it".
In parallel, authorities are searching for former Government Minister Eduardo del Castillo, accused of having protected alleged Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset. The latter was captured and handed over to the DEA last March; he had lived and operated in eastern Bolivia whilst being sought by several countries across the continent.
The case comes at a particularly fragile moment for the Paz government. The elimination of diesel subsidies has driven up food prices and eroded the population's purchasing power. This is compounded by the scandal generated by the detention of his Argentine adviser Fernando Cerimedo, which has already damaged the leader's image.
Source: Google News BO — Crime