Peru’s ex-President Castillo shifted to prison after impeachment

BOGOTA, Colombia

Peru’s former President Pedro Castillo was transferred to a prison on Wednesday night, capping off a dramatic day that saw him impeached for rebellion after he tried to dissolve parliament.

Castillo was taken to the Barbadillo prison in the capital Lima’s Ate district.

Castillo was arrested hours earlier after a televised speech in which he said he planned to dissolve Congress, a last-ditch attempt to retain power as he faced an impeachment trial.

Dina Boluarte has been sworn in as Peru’s new president, the first woman to hold the position in the country.

Castillo’s move was immediately condemned by political forces, including the party that brought him to power, Peru Libre (Free Peru), and a series of Cabinet resignations followed.

Boluarte, who was vice president until Wednesday evening, also “rejected” Castillo’s decision to “perpetrate the breakdown of the constitutional order by closing the Congress,” while the nation’s ombudsman called the attempt to dissolve Congress a “coup.”

Following the chaos generated by Castillo’s statement, local media reported that the president had gone to the Mexican Embassy in the capital Lima to request asylum.

A video circulating on social media showed how police intercepted his car and took him into custody.

Lawmakers voted 101-6, with 10 abstentions, to remove Castillo, citing reasons of “permanent moral incapacity.”​​​​​​​