The Supreme Court of Justice of Peru, ordered the night of this Thursday, December 15, the preventive detention for 18 months against former President Pedro Castillo, investigated for the crime of rebellion and conspiracy in the modality of the crime against the Powers of the State and the Constitutional Order, as well as the alleged perpetrator of the crime against the Public Administration and Public Tranquility.
The court’s decision comes after Castillo tried to establish a self-coup, on December 7, under an “Exception Government” and the dissolution of Congress.
Previously, Castillo was detained for seven days in the prison of the Special Operations Directorate of the Peruvian Police.
During the hearing, the Prosecutor’s Office pointed out that there are elements of conviction that link Castillo to the crimes charged, and highlighted the message to the Nation issued through the media, the
statements by Salas Zegarra, the reporter for the national channel, the cameraman Pantoja, Bobbio Rosas, Sánchez Palomino.
In turn, he explained that there is both a procedural danger of flight and of obstruction, considering that after giving the message to the Nation, Castillo withdrew from the Government Palace with his family and on the way ordered the driver to go to the Embassy of Mexico to request asylum, which was validated by the Chancellor of Mexico and President López Obrador who ratified that if Castillo Terrones requested asylum, they would grant it.
“He has no known address, since his ID contains an address in Chota, when he was residing in the Government Palace since July 2021, and said address did not change, being this mandatory; he added that there is also a danger of obstruction since it could disturb the investigations that he has pending; as well as the damage caused in reference to the coup d’état with the subsequent closure of roads and airports must be taken into account,” added the Peruvian Prosecutor’s Office.
For his part, Castillo’s defense argued that said procedural danger does not exist, since his defendant has a known address, as well as a job to which he will return as a teacher in the town of Puña, Tacabamba, Chota, after he was dismissed as President.
“The prosecution’s references to an alleged request for asylum by Castillo Terrones is based on newspaper clippings and a YouTube video, in which it is indicated that Mexico would be willing to grant him asylum, an asylum that he never requested or required” he added.
