Former Paraguayan President Santiago Peña was arrested at his home in Asunción on Nov. 6, after the Senate voted to impeach and remove him from office. (Foto: Instagram)
Former Paraguayan President Santiago Peña was arrested Friday night, Nov. 6, under a court order, Paraguayan media reported. National Police took the 47-year-old into custody at his home in Asunción, the country’s capital, after the Senate voted unanimously to impeach and remove him from office earlier that day.
The court said it had found indications of breach of trust and other crimes related to a banking scandal that has shaken Paraguay this week. The Public Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation after opposition lawmakers filed a complaint accusing Peña of illicit enrichment, money laundering, corruption and administrative fraud. Those accusations have not been presented as proven findings.
Peña was elected president in 2023 and held shares in a company linked to Ueno Bank until March 2025. After he took office, the bank received large deposits from government agencies totaling about $850 million, equivalent to approximately 4.5 billion Brazilian reais, according to the report.
Ueno Bank was dissolved Tuesday, Nov. 3, after the Central Bank of Paraguay deemed it insolvent, meaning it lacked the funds to meet its financial obligations.
Amid the crisis, Peña submitted a resignation request to Congress, but it was not accepted. He was subsequently removed through impeachment and lost his political immunity. The arrest followed the court order issued earlier Friday.
