Deposed Peruvian "president of the poor" sentenced to eleven years in prison for attempted coup

(Patria) - Peru's Supreme Court has sentenced former left-wing president Pedro Castillo to more than eleven years in prison for attempting to dissolve Congress and rule by decree to avoid impeachment, AFP reported.

Dubbed Peru's first president from humble origins, the former rural school teacher, who had never held elected office before winning the presidency, was impeached by Congress and jailed after attempting to seize power in December 2022.

During his sixteen months in power, he repeatedly clashed with the opposition-dominated Congress, accusing them of trying to keep power in the hands of the elites.

The verdict comes a day after another left-wing former president, Martin Vizcarra, was sentenced to fourteen years in prison for accepting bribes while serving as regional governor.

Vizcarra joined two former presidents already behind bars in a special jail for former leaders at a police base east of Lima on corruption charges: Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) and Alejandro Toledo (2001-2006). Castillo (56) was also held at the facility until the end of his trial, which took place in a courtroom next to the prison.

The former union leader, who came to power in 2021 promising to help the poor, made the shock decision to dissolve Congress to try to avoid impeachment over alleged corruption.

However, his gambit spectacularly backfired, with members of his own government resisting what prosecutors called an attempted coup. Delivering the verdict in a session lasting several hours, the Supreme Court found him guilty of "conspiracy to commit rebellion" against "state powers and the constitutional order." The court acquitted him on separate charges of abuse of authority and disturbing the public order.

He was sentenced to eleven years, five months, and fifteen days in prison. Prosecutors had sought a 34-year sentence. Castillo was arrested as he was travelling with his family to the Mexican embassy to seek asylum.

His wife and two children have since been living in exile.

Clash with Mexico

Castillo's former prime minister, Betssy Chavez, accused of being his accomplice in the conspiracy, was also sentenced to eleven and a half years in prison.

However, the Mexican embassy granted her asylum before the end of her eight-month trial, infuriating Peru, which immediately severed ties with Mexico over interference in Peruvian affairs.

Peru's interim president, Jose Jeri, has not ruled out police storming the Mexican embassy to arrest her.

Castillo's arrest and impeachment triggered mass protests in 2022 among the working class in rural areas. The protests were brutally suppressed, with at least fifty deaths.

His extremely unpopular successor, former vice president Dina Boluarte, led the country through a turbulent 22 months marked by a deep security crisis before she too was impeached in October. She was replaced by Jeri, then president of Congress.

He is Peru's seventh president since 2016. Congress has removed three presidents, two resigned to avoid a similar fate, and one completed his interim term.