Attorney General of Bolivia summons former President Evo Morales to testify in investigation for alleged human trafficking and smuggling

( Spanish) – The former president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, has been summoned by Attorney General Juan Lanchipa Ponce to testify in the framework of the investigation into alleged human trafficking and smuggling that is continuing against him, the Prosecutor’s Office reported in a statement this Monday.

Morales must appear this Thursday at the Tarija departmental prosecutor’s office. The Prosecutor’s Office also summoned the parents of the alleged victim in this case, whose name remains confidential, so the authorities will not provide more information at the moment.

has reached out to Morales for comment on the subpoena and is awaiting a response. On his social networks, the former president – who is seeking re-election – has rejected the accusations and attributed them to an alleged attempt to silence him.

“We have asked the prosecutors for maximum diligence and also for strict compliance with procedural deadlines and respect for due process in this case,” Lanchipa stated in the letter. The judicial official added that the investigation “was never paralyzed,” in the context of the public complaints made by the former prosecutor of Tarija, Sandra Gutiérrez, who accused him of having dismissed her for having requested the arrest of Morales.

“This case continues in its regular investigation process, it never stopped, in fact the Commission of Prosecutors formed by the Attorney General’s Office carried out the issuance of different tax requirements directed at public and private entities to request information that is relevant to the investigation and We are waiting to receive that information to make the corresponding evaluation,” said Lanchipa.

With information from Mauricio Torres