Luis Arce, the former president of Bolivia who stepped down on November 8, was taken into custody on Wednesday amid allegations of embezzling state funds connected to a large corruption investigation involving the Movement for Socialism (MAS) party.
The MAS party governed Bolivia for two decades, initially under Evo Morales and later under Arce. This time included contentious moments, such as Morales’s attempts to cling to power, accusations of election fraud, and his eventual exile. Many MAS leaders fled as well, leaving conservative senator Jeanine Áñez as the highest official, whom Arce later imprisoned on questionable charges related to a supposed coup.
Although Arce leveraged his presidency to target anti-socialist political figures, he found himself at odds with Morales. The MAS party became divided when Morales returned from exile, insisting he reclaim leadership from Arce. This split effectively sidelined Arce, who chose not to seek re-election, while Morales again violated constitutional norms.
Arce was released from prison in November when a leftist candidate, Rodrigo Paz, won the presidency after Arce’s party lost power. Paz’s administration subsequently initiated broad investigations into Arce’s activities during his time with MAS, which resulted in his arrest alongside various other criminal probes, as confirmed by officials.
Reports from the Bolivian newspaper El Debel state that police arrested Arce during a “surprise operation” in La Paz. He reportedly did not resist and was taken for questioning in a white van. Initially, Arce shared the news of his own arrest, indicating that he considered himself innocent.
Paz’s team later verified Arce’s arrest, linking it to a scandal involving the Indigenous Fund from 2014, which prompted investigations into multiple MAS officials tied to both Arce and Morales. Bolivian government minister Marco Antonio Oviedo described the arrest as a significant step in combating corruption, stating that the economic fallout amounted to 360 million bolivianos (around $52 million) in this case alone.
Media outlets reported that the allegations against Arce stem from his tenure as both president and economy minister. He is accused of facilitating the misappropriation of public funds meant for indigenous initiatives, redirecting them to private bank accounts of various officials, himself included. Specifics reveal that funds earmarked for winter housing projects ended up with former lawmaker Lidia Pati Marisacca, who allegedly received nearly 670,000 bolivianos (about $97,000).
Prosecutors have indicated that Arce may be detained due to concerns he could flee or interfere with the investigation, including intimidating witnesses.
As of now, former President Áñez has not addressed the situation; however, other officials linked to the political turmoil following Arce’s election have spoken out. In the wake of Morales’s departure, Luis Fernando Camacho, the conservative governor of Santa Cruz and arrested on suspicion of involvement in a “coup,” welcomed Arce’s arrest. He highlighted the MAS government’s alleged history of torture and even murder of indigenous fund administrators.
“Corruption related to the Indigenous Fund marks one of the most shameful periods of MAS’s authoritarian rule,” Camacho asserted. He claimed significant amounts of money designated for projects were instead deposited into the personal accounts of MAS leaders and pointed out the judicial torment faced by fund administrators until their deaths in prison.
General Juan José Zuniga, currently incarcerated for an incident involving Arce in 2024, also released a statement celebrating the former president’s arrest.
“Welcome to the People’s Prison, Mr. Luis Arce Catacora,” Zuniga wrote, declaring that the day would be marked in history as the moment when tyranny was challenged.
Meanwhile, Evo Morales, currently in hiding due to an arrest warrant issued for pedophilia charges, has not publicly commented on Arce’s situation.
