Peru: Seven premises belonging to Pedro Castillo’s party raided due to money laundering investigation

Personnel of the Public Ministry and the National Police of Peru (PNP) They raided several properties of the Free Peru party this Saturday, as part of the investigation which is being followed by suspected money laundering to this political formation, with which the president Pedro Castillo won the election.

By a judicial resolution, disseminated by various national media, the Permanent National Court of Preparatory Investigation specializing in the crimes of corruption of public officials declared the prosecution request founded and ordered the search, house search and seizure of property in seven premises linked to Free Peru.

These buildings include the residence of the leader and founder of the party, the Marxist physician Vladimir Cerrón, who is currently serving a 4-year suspended sentence (without prison) for a corruption crime he committed when he was governor of the central Andean region of Junín, between 2011 and 2014.

The operation, as detailed in the resolution, aims “find consistent accounting information“From Peru Free, as part of the investigation into the case called”The dynamics of the center», Which investigates the alleged illegal financing of the party through accusations brought by the regional transport directorate of Junín, where officials they were supposed to ask for bribes driving license applicants.

According to the thesis of the prosecutor Richard rojas, Cerrón allegedly led this network of illegal accusations to finance his party’s election campaigns and pay compensation for his current conviction for corruption that prevented him from running for the presidency.

Besides Cerrón, other leaders of the ruling party are also involved in this investigation.including the prime minister Guido Bellido, who would have been one of the beneficiaries of this illicit money during the last electoral campaign, where he was elected deputy for the southern Andean region of Cusco.

In addition, Bellido, one of the members of the most orthodox left of Free Peru, He is also accused of terrorism and of advocating terrorism. have paid tribute on social networks to Edith Lagos, one of the most famous faces of the first bloodthirsty and terrorist actions of the Shining Path Maoist guerrillas in the early 1980s.

The vote of confidence

The raids come a day after the Castillo government received a vote of confidence from Congress. The unicameral parliament without a ruling majority gave the green light to the cabinet with 73 votes for and 50 against, after an intense debate that began on Thursday.

Bellido appeared before parliament on Thursday to comply with Peruvian law, which requires the prime minister to explain the main lines of its management, who took office four weeks ago, after Castillo took office as president on July 28.

The three conservative groups Fuerza Popular, Avanza País and Renovación Popular voted against Bellido. In his speech, Hernando Guerra Garcia, spokesman for the Fujimori Popular Force, the most powerful opposition party in parliament, called the prime minister’s speech “populist” and said that in his group’s eyes the cabinet “He has no vision and only produces mistrust.”

For his part, the spokesperson for the conservative bench Avanza País, Jose williamsHe assured that the “biggest problem” of the Castillo government is “the question of ideology” and accused it of trying to “place” the ideas of communism “within the structures of the state”.

At a time, Jorge Montoyaspokesman for the far-right Renovación Popular, insisted on the demand for change from several ministers, which is why they would not give a vote of confidence.

In his previous presentation to the plenary session of the Legislative Assembly, Bellido summoned the unit to “solve one of the biggest political, social, environmental and health crises of the last decades”.

In addition, he argued that the “historic mission” of the government of Castillo is “bring about structural changes in an orderly, democratic and peaceful manner“Serve the most vulnerable sectors of the country.

“It’s time to start closing this gap in access to rights that embarrasses us as PeruviansBellido said.

(With information from EFE)

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