Television footage shows government agents armed with sledgehammers entering Dina Bolarte's home.
Saturday 30 March 2024 09:37, UK
Government officials investigating the president over a luxury watch broke into the home of the president of Peru.
Television footage showed the team using sledgehammers to storm Dina Bolarte's mansion in the capital Lima.
Since assuming power as vice president in July 2021 and becoming president in December 2022, she has been under investigation for allegedly owning a private collection of luxury watches.
Bolarte initially insisted that ownership of at least one Rolex was a long-standing possession he had acquired through “personal gain” since he was 18 years old, and asked the media not to investigate his personal issues.
But Attorney General Juan Villena said the president had an obligation to quickly produce the three Rolex watches for the investigation and warned them not to destroy or destroy them.
He criticized Bolarte after he asked for his court appearance to be postponed for two weeks.
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Ms. Bolarte has been accused of violating an earlier promise to tell prosecutors the truth, exacerbating a new political crisis stemming from her unexplained Rolex ownership.
Peru has been experiencing recent political turmoil, which peaked in December 2022 when left-wing lawyer Bolarte took office.
Her predecessor, Pedro Castillo, Peru's first rural-born president, was ousted and arrested the same day after widely condemned trying to dissolve Congress to avoid an impeachment trial.
Thousands of people then descended on Peru's capital, clashing with police. Violent protests erupted demanding Bolarte's resignation, leaving 55 people dead.
The protests highlighted deep divisions between Lima's urban elite and the largely indigenous south.
More than a year later, critics say Bolarte's government is working on legislation they say could block calls for early elections and undermine the independence of Peru's judiciary. , accusing the country of becoming increasingly authoritarian.
