Paraguayan prosecutors charged former President Santiago Peña with alleged fraud involving public funds and interference in oversight of Ueno Bank. (Foto: Instagram)
Paraguay’s Public Prosecutor’s Office charged former President Santiago Peña on Saturday, Nov. 7, with fraud involving the allocation of public funds and interference in oversight of Ueno Bank. Prosecutors also charged former Central Bank President Carlos Carvallo and asked that both men remain in custody.
Peña was arrested Friday night, Nov. 6, after Paraguay’s Congress concluded impeachment proceedings amid a banking crisis affecting the country. Carvallo turned himself in to police in Asunción. On Saturday morning, Peña gave testimony at the prosecutor’s office.
In a statement, prosecutors alleged that Peña acted in his own interests in connection with Ueno Bank while in office. A fund linked to Peña was among the financial institution’s owners. The Central Bank intervened in the bank, which closed its doors at the beginning of November.
Prosecutors also allege that Peña interfered with regulators’ oversight of the bank and influenced public pension funds’ investments in the institution. Those investments could total as much as $850 million. Carvallo is accused of producing false documents about Ueno Bank’s condition and acting in his own interest; he is also linked to the digital bank.
The prosecution asked for the arrests of Peña and Carvallo to be converted into preventive detention. It also sought access to banking, tax, asset and corporate information about both men.
