An arrest warrant has been issued for former Bolivian president Evo Morales on suspicion of alleged “trafficking” of a 15-year-old girl while he was in office from 2006 to 2019, authorities said Monday.
Sandra Gutierrez, an attorney with the Bolivian public prosecutor’s office, said it was appropriate “to issue an arrest warrant, a situation which I did using my authority.”
The authority to issue the warrant was given on October 16, but Gutierrez did not reveal it until Monday.
“The case is very complex,” Gutierrez said at a press conference, explaining she had not announced it earlier because it involved a former president — one who has vehemently denied the accusations on multiple occasions.
Days before the warrant was granted, supporters of Morales initiated a series of grassroots protests by forming roadblocks across highways across the country, with the blockades lasting 23 days.
Despite the upheaval, Gutierrez confirmed police operations were initiated to arrest Morales, who has since taken refuge in the central province of Chapare, a political stronghold of his.
“It was impossible to proceed with the execution of the arrest warrant against this citizen… many police officers were victims of aggression and attempted murder on behalf of the blockade protesters,” Gutierrez said.
Read moreEx-president Morales says Bolivia government has ‘dark plot to destroy’ him
‘Formal charge’
Gutierrez added that police sent “numerous” reports explaining why they could not execute the arrest warrant, and that they signaled “the lives of not only police officers, (but) also private individuals were at stake.”
With the “formal charge” issued against Morales, he now faces a sentence of up to “10 to 15 years,” according to Gutierrez.
The scandal dates back to 2015 during Morales’s presidency, with legal documents alleging the former coca farmer had a daughter with the victim in 2016.
The prosecutors’ documents say the victim had been put in the “youth guard” for Morales by her parents “with the sole purpose of climbing the political ladder and obtaining benefits… in exchange for their underage daughter.”
As a result, the victim’s mother was indicted alongside Morales on suspicion of “aggravated human trafficking.”
Morales has previously dismissed the case as the investigation had focused on statutory rape charges, but prosecutors have since adjusted their focus toward alleged trafficking.
Monday’s arrest warrant is the second against Morales for the same case.
In September, Gutierrez had ordered Morales’ arrest, but a legal appeal by his attorneys was successful in halting that move.
The high-profile scandal has played out in the lead-up to the 2025 presidential elections, with Morales accusing the government of President Luis Arce, his former ally, of conducting “lawfare” to “proscribe” him from the electoral race.
(AFP)
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Publish date : 2024-12-16 12:41:00
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