Former Justice Minister Alvaro Coimbra and former Energy Minister Rodrigo Guzmán were previously detained as part of the investigation into the case
Janine Añez, who has been acting president since the resignation of head of state Evo Morales in November 2019, was detained on Saturday as part of an investigation into a coup d’état in Bolivia. The South American country’s interior minister, Carlos del Castillo, said.
“I inform the Bolivian people that Ms Janine Añez has been arrested and is currently in police custody”, – the interior minister said on Twitter. The prosecutor’s office believes Agnés was involved in a coup d’état in the country.
Former Justice Minister Alvaro Coimbra and former Energy Minister Rodrigo Guzmán were previously detained as part of the investigation into the coup d’état in Bolivia. The prosecutor’s office has also issued arrest warrants for three other former ministers of the Añez government. The former officials face charges of “terrorism, sedition and conspiracy”.
Bolivia held presidential elections on 20 October 2019. According to the Supreme Electoral Court, Morales, the incumbent head of state at the time, won a majority of votes. His main rival Carlos Mesa said he would not recognise his opponent’s victory in the first round.
After three weeks of protests, the leadership of the Bolivian Armed Forces asked Morales to resign and he stepped down, describing the situation as a coup d’état. The second vice-speaker of the House of Senators, Janine Añez, representing the opposition, announced that she was taking over the presidency until new elections were held and appointed her own cabinet.
In October 2020, the country held a new vote, which resulted in the election of Luis Arce, an associate of Morales, as president.