Banking scandal in Paraguay: After impeachment: charges against Paraguay's ex-president

Asuncion. Paraguay's deposed President Santiago Peña has been charged with breach of trust and self-favoring in connection with the Ueno Bank scandal. The public prosecutor's office also requested pre-trial detention against him and the former central bank chief Carlos Carvallo, who was also accused, as the public prosecutor's office announced at a press conference.

Peña appeared at the public prosecutor's office on Saturday within 24 hours of an arrest warrant being issued to respond to the allegations. He and Carvallo exercised their right to refuse to testify, the ABC news portal reported. In addition to breach of trust and self-favoring, the public prosecutor's office also accuses Carvallo of producing false public documents.

The investigators also requested a general restriction on the disposal of the assets of the two accused and their freezing. The aim is to secure assets in order to be able to compensate for financial damage from the suspected crimes if necessary. A court must now decide on the requested measures.

The public prosecutor emphasized that this was the beginning of the investigation. So far there is a suspicion of the crimes mentioned, further evidence is still being collected. Evidence of a criminal organization has not yet been the subject of the indictment.

The case is part of the scandal surrounding the digital bank Ueno, which fell into a serious crisis after years of growth. The Paraguayan central bank initiated resolution proceedings after the financial institution's capital ratio fell below half of the required minimum value. At times, customers were no longer able to access their accounts.

Peña had business relationships with Grupo Vázquez, which also owns Ueno Bank, until March 2025. He had always rejected allegations of possible conflicts of interest. On Friday he was removed from the presidency through parliamentary impeachment proceedings. His previous vice president Pedro Alliana was sworn in as his successor and is expected to rule the country until August 2028.