Former Peruvian leader: I am imprisoned without guilt
Former Peruvian President Pedro Castillo claimed that he was imprisoned innocently and claimed that he did not incite the people to riot.
Castillo, who was sentenced to a total of 54 months in pretrial detention for various charges, said at the hearing he attended online: “Today I am a political prisoner, I have been detained since December 7 and I have no right to communicate . Your Honor, I did not take up arms.”
Stating that he was imprisoned innocently, Castillo said: “I have not conspired or committed an act of rebellion, the rebellious action is planned, organized and put into practice. Tell me, (to the court) was Congress dissolved or did the institutions interfere? “What happened is that it was a random practice and they detained me unconstitutionally,” he said.
On March 8, the Supreme Court accepted the request of the Prosecutor’s Office for 36 months of preventive detention for former President Castillo for allegedly leading a criminal organization and committing public crimes. The Peruvian Supreme Court also sentenced Castillo to 18 months in pretrial detention on December 14, 2022 on charges of “abuse of office, riot, and conspiracy.”
Castillo defended that he has not committed any crime and said: “Peru knows, the public knows that those who today make constitutional complaints will in any case be part of this so-called criminal organization.”
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There are five ongoing criminal investigations against Castillo, two of which are investigating whether he was part of a “criminal organization” during his term as president.
The former president was impeached by Congress on December 7, 2022 on charges of “permanent moral incompetence”, which he accused of overthrowing the government. The reason for the dismissal of Castillo in Congress was given as “the usurpation of public functions, hindering the functioning of the powers of the State and trying to violate the constitutional order.”
Pedro Castillo was arrested after his decision to dissolve Congress and form a national emergency government. (AA)