Bolivian Prosecutor Asks for 15 Years in Prison for Añez

On Monday, the Bolivian Attorney General's Office will request 15 years in prison for the coup-leader Jeanine Áñez. This will happen when the trial against her resumes after being paralyzed since April due to maneuvers carried out by her defense attorneys.

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"The Prosecutor's Office will ask the Sentencing Court for a sentence of 15 years for Mrs. Jeanine Añez," Attorney General Juan Lanchipa said, adding that he is ready for the hearing that is expected to be installed at 2:00 p.m. local time in a court of La Paz.

Over 70 pieces of evidence and almost twenty witness statements were presented in the "Coup d'état II" case, in which former Senator Añez is accused of breach of duties and unconstitutional resolutions.

In the morning, her defense presented a new "recourse of complaint" at the headquarters of the Constitutional Court in Sucre city to challenge a rejection of a previous request through which she challenged the constitutionality of the procedures in the "Coup d'état II" case.

According to her lawyers, Añez "did not execute any coup d'etat" since she legally assumed the Bolivian presidency after "the power vacuum" that occurred in the last quarter of 2019. "It is cowardly that all those who endorsed her presidency and accompanied her wash their hands today," said Horacio Poppe, a far-right lawmaker.

Former presidential candidate Carlos Mesa, Santa Cruz Governor Luis Camacho, and other politicians who backed the coup against President Evo Morales also argue that "there was no coup in 2019" and that Añez is a victim of political persecution and legal abuse.

The "Coup d'état II" case, however, accuses Añez of illegally assuming the country's highest functions after violating Senate regulations to assume the interim presidency. Previously, in the "Coup d'état I" case, she was charged with terrorism, sedition and conspiracy.