Asunción (EFE).- Paraguay’s National Police reported on Friday that former President Santiago Peña (2023-2026), removed from office hours earlier by the Senate in an impeachment trial, “is now officially under arrest” at his home, after an order issued by the Prosecutor General’s Office amid the political crisis triggered by the closure of Ueno Bank.
«He has just been served with the arrest warrant and informed that he will remain under house arrest,» a police officer told reporters near Peña’s residence.
The arrest warrant orders Peña to remain under house arrest until he appears before the Attorney General’s Office in the Economic Crimes and Anti-Corruption Unit in Asunción.
«It has been confirmed that he is at his residence and has been taken into custody,» said Silvia González, one of the prosecutors handling the case.
The document also orders the arrest of Carlos Carvallo Spalding, who headed the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) until Tuesday before resigning amid the Ueno Bank asset-stripping scandal.
Local television footage showed about 20 officers guarding the house while some protesters called for Peña to be taken into custody.
«The people are demanding that he go to jail. We’re going to hold a vigil to ensure that he doesn’t flee or stay home and that he sleeps behind bars,» said a woman who identified herself as Andrea Salazar.
Paraguay plunged into a crisis after the Central Bank (BCP) ordered a resolution process for Ueno, a financial institution with 2.94 million customers in this country of 6.1 million people. It received millions in funds from public entities during the term of the former president.
Thousands of savers, including 32,000 retirees from the Social Security Institute (IPS), one of the country’s main pension funds, reported being unable to access their funds.
Peña remained in office after Congress failed to act on the resignation he submitted on Thursday due to a lack of quorum.
According to Article 189 of the Paraguayan Constitution, democratically elected former presidents serve as senators for life «unless they have been impeached and found guilty.»
A senator enjoys immunity and cannot be subject to criminal prosecution without Congress first approving the removal of that immunity. With the removal from office, Peña will no longer be a senator for life.
Shortly before the vote, Peña announced on X that he had resigned.
Paraguay’s new president, Pedro Alliana, announced on Friday that those affected by the “financial collapse” resulting from the closure of Ueno Bank “will be fully compensated.”
The announcement came after Alliana was sworn into office following the removal of Santiago Peña.
«I am here to make a concrete promise: our fellow citizens who are currently facing difficult times as a result of the financial collapse will be fully compensated. We will not leave them to fend for themselves,” Alliana said in his first address to the nation.
Shortly before it, the president of Congress, Basilio Núñez of the ruling party, presented Alliana with the presidential sash and staff during a special session.EFE
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