Bolivia: the prosecutor’s office is asking for six months of preventive detention for the governor of Santa Cruz

A prosecutor in Bolivia this Thursday asked for six months of pretrial detention for the Governor of Santa Cruz and leader of the opposition, Luis Fernando Camachoaccused of “terrorism” in a case linked to the departure of leftist former president Evo Morales in 2019.

“The requested precautionary measure is preventive detention for a period of six months”, to be served in the maximum security prison of Chonchocoro, said the prosecutor in charge of the case, Omar Mejillones, at a press conference after the arrest. by Camacho on Wednesday.

Camacho, the leader of the opposition, was surprisingly arrested in Santa Cruz on Wednesday when he returned home.

No explanation has been given at the moment. It was later learned that it was due to her alleged participation in the events that led to the resignation of then-President Evo Morales and her internal replacement by Jeanine Añez, in 2019, after the fraudulent elections of that year.

This was stated in the request presented by the Attorney General to the precautionary judge of La Paz, made known by the newspaper El Deber, in which it is specified that Camacho is accused of “terrorism” and his preventive detention is requested for the “risk of flight”. and contamination of evidence”.

Camacho’s arrest, which his supporters describe as a “kidnapping”, has sparked a wave of violence and protests in Santa Cruz.

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Camacho’s arrest sparked incidents in Santa Cruz, where supporters of the governor tried to stop his transfer to La Paz.

After a night of riots which included burning public officesBolivia’s Santa Cruz region was under tension on Thursday awaiting news from the governor.

Camacho spent the night in a police cell in La Paz.

At his hearing before the prosecutor handling the caseCamacho took refuge in silence but delivered a note through his defense in which he said “my only fault is to have defended democracy and they stopped the fraud.”

Meanwhile, the powerful Santa Cruz Civic Committee – which leads regional protests by hard-wing Bolivian right-wing – announced a midday meeting on Thursday define “an answer strong” to the government, which it accuses of promoting “political persecution”, said its president Rómulo Calvo.

AFP and ANSA