Bolivia's prosecutor's office has announced it is opening a preliminary investigation into former leftist president Evo Morales, accused of involvement in the killing and torture of European citizens years ago.
According to case files, Bolivian police raided a hotel in the city of Santa Cruz in 2009, fatally shooting Eduardo Rózsa Flores (a Bolivian-Croatian national), Michael Dwyer (Ireland) and Árpád Magyarosi (Hungary-Romania). The two survivors of the incident, Mario Tadic (Bolivia-Croatia) and Elöd Tóásó (Hungary), later alleged they were tortured while in detention.
Morales' government at the time said Rózsa Flores had led an attempt to stir up a separatist movement, backed by the right-wing economic elite in Santa Cruz.
Acting Attorney General José Armando Urioste announced the preliminary investigation targeting Morales just a week after taking office. In a document sent to the Supreme Court, Urioste said authorities are gathering evidence against Morales and former vice president Álvaro García Linera "over allegations of committing the crimes of murder, abuse, torture and unlawful detention."
The investigation follows a complaint filed by two right-wing lawmakers, Tomasa Yarhui and Rodrigo Antonio.
At the time of the raid, Morales told reporters during an official visit to Venezuela that he had ordered the detention of the foreigners, whom he described as "mercenaries."
Relatives of the victims and the survivors took the case to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. In 2021, the commission ruled that Bolivia's government had violated human rights.
Neither of the two men named in the new investigation has commented so far.
Morales, Bolivia's first Indigenous leader, is currently evading two active arrest warrants. One relates to allegations over his role in mass protests that paralyzed the country for 53 days earlier this year. The other accuses him of trafficking a minor with whom he is alleged to have a child. Morales denies the charges.
