Bolivia investigates Morales over 2009 European deaths

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 13 Oct, 18:08 · Archive

Bolivia's attorney general has opened an investigation into former president Evo Morales over the 2009 killing of three European nationals.

Bolivia's attorney general has opened a criminal investigation into former president Evo Morales and ex-vice-president Álvaro García Linera over alleged murder and torture linked to a 2009 police operation. Acting attorney general José Armando Urioste announced the preliminary investigation on Monday, saying authorities were gathering evidence for a special legal procedure that would require approval from two-thirds of Bolivia's Legislative Assembly.

The investigation concerns an April 2009 police raid at the Hotel Las Américas in Santa Cruz. Elite police officers shot and killed three European nationals: Eduardo Rózsa Flores, a Bolivian-Croatian, Michael Dwyer, an Irishman, and Árpád Magyarosi, a Hungarian-Romanian. Two other Europeans arrested during the raid, Mario Tadic and Elöd Tóásó, subsequently alleged they had been tortured while in custody. The Morales administration claimed the dead were leading a separatist movement with funding from rightwing elites in Santa Cruz.

When the raid occurred, Morales said he had ordered the detention of the foreigners, whom he called 'mercenaries'. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights concluded in 2021 that the operation involved extrajudicial executions and serious human rights violations coordinated by senior government officials without judicial or prosecutorial authorisation. Neither Morales nor García Linera has commented on the investigation. Morales is currently in hiding from two active arrest warrants against him.

How it is being reported

• Bolivia investigates Evo Morales over killing of three EuropeansBolivia's Attorney General's Office has opened a new criminal investigation into former President Evo Morales and former Vice President Álvaro García Linera.UPI · 13 Oct, 17:53
• Bolivia investigates ex-president Evo Morales over alleged ties to 2009 killingsLeftist former leader accused of involvement in shooting of three Europeans in Santa Cruz and torture of two others Bolivia’s attorney general has announced an investigation into leftist former president Evo Morales, alleging his involvement in the murder and torture of European citizens in 2009. Seventeen years ago, police raided a hotel in the city of Santa Cruz, shooting dead Eduardo Rózsa Flores, a Bolivian-Croatian, Michael Dwyer, an Irishman, and Árpád Magyarosi, a Hungarian-Romanian. Continue reading...The Guardian · 12 Oct, 22:40

In this story: Evo Morales · Álvaro García Linera · Eduardo Rózsa Flores · Michael Dwyer · Árpád Magyarosi · Bolivia · Santa Cruz

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