The Paraguayan Prosecutor’s Office requested preventive detention against Santiago Peña for the Ueno bank case

The Public Ministry of Paraguay charged this Saturday former president Santiago Peña, within the framework of the investigation into the closure of Ueno Bank, of which he had been a shareholder, for the alleged crimes of ‘injury of trust and administration for personal gain’.

In addition, the prosecution requested preventive detention and the inhibition of assets of the former president, within the framework of an investigation that also includes the former head of the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP), Carlos Carvallo, who was also arrested. In any case, both protected their rights and refrained from testifying, but this does not constitute an acceptance of the crimes they are accused of.

According to the prosecution’s presentation, Peña was charged with ‘injury of trust and administration for personal gain’, two criminal figures that are part of the investigation into Ueno Bank, while in the case of Carvallo, the accusation is broader, since they attributed to him the alleged crimes of ‘injury of trust, administration for personal gain and production of public documents with false content’.

After the closure of that banking entity, one of the most important in the country, Peña was dismissed and this Saturday he had to appear in court to make his defense.

Peña arrived at the headquarters of the State Attorney General’s Office in Asunción, just hours after an arrest warrant was executed against him, aboard a dark car and accompanied by a small police escort.

The former president went to the judicial offices to give his first investigative statement assisted by his defense lawyer, Ricardo Preda, who publicly advanced the central argument: that his client is not directly responsible for the financial placements.

A small group of citizens had gathered around the tax building, awaiting the arrival of the former head of state. For strict security reasons, the authorities changed the location of the appearance at the last minute, so the statement, which was initially going to be held at the regular headquarters of the UDEA, was moved to the main building of the State Attorney General’s Office, located in downtown Asunción.