General Juan Zúñiga, accused of leading the “self-coup” against the Bolivian socialist, Luis Arce, was transferred this Saturday (29) to the maximum security prison. The decision was made by a judge who imposed six months of preventive detention on the soldier .
Zúñiga was escorted to Chonchocoro prison, on the outskirts of El Alto, a neighboring municipality of La Paz, along with two other soldiers also accused of leading the coup, Vice Admiral Juan Arnez, former head of the Navy, and Alexandro Irahola, former -head of the Army’s mechanized brigade.
The three soldiers are accused of terrorism and armed rebellion, and carry sentences of up to 20 years in prison. Along with them, 18 other active and reserve soldiers and civilians have been arrested in connection with the failed coup.
Upon being arrested on Wednesday night, General Zúñiga said that the coup attempt was designed by Arce. The president’s idea, according to the general, was to increase his popularity amid the chaos.
This Saturday (29), the Bolivian government also claimed to have found evidence of a military plan to mobilize forces from the department of Tarija, during the coup attempt.
“We found a radiogram with which it was instructed that the plane (…) in the Government ministry be transferred to the department of Tarija to bring attack groups”, the Government minister, Eduardo Del Castillo, told the press.
Bolivian government officials said Wednesday’s alleged coup attempt led by Zúñiga was a “failed coup d’état” meticulously “orchestrated by the military over three weeks.”
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