arrest warrant against Evo Morales for “human trafficking of a minor”

An arrest warrant for “human trafficking against a minor” was issued against former Bolivian President Evo Morales (2006-2019), for having had a relationship with a teenager with whom he had a daughter in 2016, said the prosecution.

“It is appropriate to issue an arrest warrant”declared prosecutor Sandra Gutierrez during a press conference. The public prosecutor specified that the arrest warrant, made public on Monday December 16, had been issued on October 16. A “exceptional measure of pre-trial detention of six months» was also “requested», added Attorney General Róger Mariaca. The arrest warrant and the exceptional measure are also coupled with an exit ban against the former president.

Sandra Guitierrez explained that he had not mentioned the affair before because “the matter is very complex”due to the fact that it involves a former president, who has repeatedly denied the accusations. The scandal dates back to 2015, when the former leader of coca producers governed Bolivia. According to the file, Evo Morales had a relationship with a 15-year-old girl, with whom he had a daughter in 2016. The prosecution's thesis is that the parents of the minor enrolled her in the “youth care” of Morales “with the sole aim of climbing the political ladder and obtaining advantages (…) in exchange for their minor daughter.”

For these facts, the Public Prosecutor's Office filed an indictment against Morales and the mother of the alleged victim for the crime of “aggravated human trafficking”. A deposition largely disrupted by supporters of the ex-president, as announced by Sandra Guitierrez, who set up roadblocks for 23 days to protest against what they consider to be “judicial persecution” against him . “It was impossible to execute the arrest warrant” because “many police officers were victims of attacks and assassination attempts by the blockaders“, affirmed the prosecutor.

Second arrest warrant

Although Morales previously dismissed the complaint as being based on facts that were investigated in 2020 under the crime of “minor embezzlement”the prosecution is now focusing on alleged human trafficking. This is the second arrest warrant for the same case issued against Morales, who wants to return to power despite a ruling from the Constitutional Court. Prosecutor Guitierrez had already ordered his arrest in September, but a legal appeal filed by the Aymara leader's defense made it possible to cancel it.

In the midst of the fight for the left's candidacy in the 2025 elections, Morales claimed that this investigation was a «lawfare» (judicial persecution) led by the government of Luis Arce, his former ally, for the “proscribe” of the electoral race.