Ueno Bank executive Miguel Vázquez surrenders following arrest warrant over financial crisis
Miguel Vázquez, a member of Ueno Bank's board of directors, voluntarily presented himself to the National Police. Six of eight executives with arrest warrants are now in custody.
Vázquez surrendered voluntarily to the Investigations Department
Miguel Vázquez, a member of Ueno Bank's board of directors and president of the Vázquez Group, presented himself this afternoon to the Investigations Department of the National Police of Asunción, according to abc.com.py. The surrender came hours after the Public Ministry ordered the immediate detention of eight executives of the banking institution, in connection with the case filed as "Federico Miguel Vázquez Villasanti and others regarding breach of trust and others" (Case No. 89/2026, Note No. 01 of 3 November 2026).
Victor Dante Gulino, Vázquez's lawyer, confirmed the voluntary surrender in an interview with Ancho Perfil de ABC Cardinal: "He is detained in the Investigations Department, he came voluntarily, when he learned the news, he told me that he wanted to present himself voluntarily as quickly as possible and we brought him. We accompanied him." Gulino also indicated that Vázquez is in good health and without complications. The other defence lawyers are Cristobal Cáceres and Alvaro Cáceres Alcina.
Six detained of eight with arrest warrants
Hugo Grance, Head of the Investigations Department of the National Police of Asunción, confirmed that Vázquez was the first to arrive at the facility. "The first to arrive here and present himself is Mr. Vázquez, the other detainees are being transferred to this department, we will surely have the complete list of how many are already detained later. So far there are four, but we have information that there could already be six," Grance stated.
In addition to Vázquez, Mariana Torres, Julio Daniel Rey, Alejandro Gomez Abente, Diego Fernando Duarte, Juan Manuel Gustale and Diana Leticia Mongelós González are in police custody. Grance noted that the department has two security cells to house the detainees, with special attention to those considered dangerous according to the degree of violence of the alleged acts.
The criminal proceedings will continue with the Public Ministry's summons for the accused to appear to give statements. Gulino clarified that from that moment Vázquez will be "deprived of his liberty at the disposal of the Public Ministry in principle and then of the criminal guarantee judge".
Crisis triggered by insolvency at Ueno Bank
The arrest warrant was issued this morning, following an announcement by the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) in the early hours of a resolution procedure against Ueno Bank. According to the BCP, an audit carried out on the entity found a deficiency in its solvency ratio below fifty per cent (50%) of the minimum required by current regulations.
The audit was initiated following a leak of internal BCP reports that flagged faults and excesses in Ueno Bank's operations with companies linked to the Vázquez Group.
As an immediate measure, the BCP will appoint agents to verify the bank's assets situation, preserve its assets and execute the necessary actions for an orderly development of the resolution procedure. In parallel, the Deposit Guarantee Fund was activated, which covers up to 75 minimum monthly salaries per individual or legal entity in each financial institution, equivalent to a limit of G. 228,300,000. This afternoon, the BCP also announced the beginning of disbursements of up to G. 10,000,000 per depositor.
Users without access to banking operations
From early on, users of Ueno Bank reported that they could not perform operations through automated teller machines or through the home banking platform, following the BCP announcement. Importers and merchants linked to the bank warned of a "semi-paralysis" of commerce and demanded the return of funds.
The crisis generated political reactions: legislators demanded that President Santiago Peña and the BCP "face the music", whilst Senator Leite demanded that "they all go to prison". Peña himself broke silence on the case only after eleven hours following the BCP's initial announcement.
Source: Google News PY — Crime