Bolivian Prosecutors Launch Investigation Into Ex-President Evo Morales Over 2009 Killings

Bolivian prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into former President Evo Morales regarding his alleged involvement in the 2009 murder, torture, and unlawful detention of European citizens. Acting Attorney General José Armando Urioste announced the probe, which also targets former Vice President Álvaro García Linera.

The investigation stems from a 2009 security operation in Santa Cruz, where police raided a hotel and killed three men: Bolivian-Croatian national Eduardo Rózsa Flores, Irish citizen Michael Dwyer, and Hungarian-Romanian national Árpád Magyarosi. Two survivors of the raid, Mario Tadic and Elöd Tóásó, were arrested and later reported being subjected to torture.

LEGAL ACTION AND HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The new inquiry follows a complaint submitted by right-wing lawmakers Rodrigo Antonio and Tomasa Yarhui. In an official document sent to the Supreme Court, Urioste stated that authorities are collecting evidence against Morales and García Linera for alleged crimes including murder, torture, abuse, and unlawful detention. At the time of the 2009 raid, Morales stated publicly during a trip to Venezuela that he had personally ordered the operation against what he characterized as foreign mercenaries. His administration previously argued that Rózsa Flores was heading a separatist plot financed by local business elites.

Victims and their relatives subsequently took the case to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which ruled in 2021 that the Bolivian state had committed human rights violations. Neither Morales nor García Linera has issued a statement regarding the new proceedings. Morales, who remains in hiding, currently faces two separate arrest warrants concerning allegations of human trafficking involving a minor and his suspected role in organizing major street protests earlier this year. Morales denies those charges.