Bolivia judge orders pre-trial detention for opposition head
By CARLOS VALDEZ and DANIEL POLITI
Associated Press
LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — A judge in Bolivia has sentenced opposition leader Luis Fernando Camacho to four months of pretrial detention on terrorism charges. After a virtual hearing that lasted more than seven hours, Judge Sergio Pacheco ordered Camacho to be remanded in custody early Friday. The judge agreed the governor of the Santa Cruz region was a flight risk and could obstruct an ongoing investigation. Shortly after the ruling, video showed Camacho being transferred to a high-security prison in La Paz. His lawyers vowed to appeal. The governor’s detention is bound to increase unrest. By the time the judge issued his ruling, a 24-hour strike called for by Camacho’s allies in Santa Cruz had already started.
