The judiciary in Peru has taken President Pedro Castillo, who was deposed by parliament for an alleged attempted coup, into custody – initially for a limited period until Tuesday. The Supreme Court announced this via Twitter after a hearing on Thursday. Accordingly, Castillo is being investigated on suspicion of a rebellion and conspiracy.
At the hearing, the ex-head of state only gave simple yes or no answers. His lawyer, former justice minister and cabinet minister Aníbal Torres, argued that Castillo was arbitrarily ousted from the presidency.
The South American country’s public prosecutor accuses Castillo of attacking the constitutional order. At the hearing, public prosecutor Marco Huamán argued that the detention was necessary to determine who else took part in the alleged rebellion and to prevent Castillo from fleeing to another country.
By dissolving the congress, the left-wing politician wanted to forestall a vote of no confidence in parliament – but both his own cabinet and the opposition sensed a coup d’etat and allowed the former village school teacher to appear.
Castillo was arrested on Wednesday. Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said the next day that he wanted to seek refuge in the Mexican embassy. Mexico’s government was open to granting asylum to the deposed president. In the meantime, the previous Vice President Dina Boluarte has been sworn in as the first head of state in the South American country.
