Bolivia's chief justice goes into exile after arrest order
Romer Saucedo, 38, says he fled political persecution. Prosecutors want him on drug trafficking allegations and will ask Interpol for a red notice.
Romer Saucedo, president of Bolivia's Supreme Tribunal of Justice, announced Wednesday in a post on X that he has left the country with his family and is now in exile. The news came the same day an arrest warrant surfaced, signed Tuesday, Nov. 3, by a commission of prosecutors.
Saucedo, 38, says he is the target of political persecution and fears for his life. "Bolivia is no longer a safe country," he wrote.
The warrant stems from an investigation into alleged trafficking of controlled substances and criminal organization. It is not a conviction. Acting Attorney General José Armando Urioste called the warrant effective and said prosecutors will ask Interpol for a red notice. The case is sealed because protected witnesses are involved. Urioste added that Saucedo faces two or three more proceedings in Santa Cruz, without saying what they involve.
Prosecutors argue that the judge failed to document a home or a job in Bolivia, and that he is a flight risk who could obstruct the inquiry. In their account, Saucedo entered Bolivia on Tuesday and left no exit record, so they suspect he crossed by land. His whereabouts are unknown.
President Rodrigo Paz's government rejects the political reading. Spokesman José Luis Gálvez describes it as "a process of dismantling a structure of corruption."
Meeting in full session, the tribunal put its senior judge, Rosmery Ruiz, in charge on an interim basis. It gave Saucedo six days to return to his duties; otherwise, the justices would consider proceedings for abandoning his post.
Several senior figures in Bolivia's justice system have been arrested since October, including former attorney general Roger Mariaca, who faces the same charges. Government Minister Marco Antonio Oviedo says Saucedo was very close to Mariaca.
Saucedo won his seat in the 2024 judicial elections with more than 700,000 votes in Santa Cruz, and his term as president ran through the end of the year. Prosecutors will need help from other countries to locate him.
