Arce arrested in sweeping corruption probe as Bolivia’s new government flexes power

Bolivia’s political reset accelerated on Wednesday as law enforcement officials arrested former President Luis Arce, a dramatic move that lands just one month after conservative leader Rodrigo Paz took office, ending nearly two decades of socialist rule.

Marco Antonio Oviedo, a senior official in the Paz administration, said Arce was detained on charges of breach of duty and financial misconduct tied to alleged embezzlement during his years as economy minister under Evo Morales. A special anti-corruption police unit confirmed Arce is being held at its headquarters in La Paz.

“It is the decision of this government to fight corruption, and we will arrest all those responsible for this massive embezzlement,” Oviedo said.

The Paz government is framing the arrest as proof it intends to target wrongdoing “at the highest levels.” Arce’s allies, meanwhile, see something far more familiar: the criminalisation of political rivals.

Authorities accuse Arce and several former officials of diverting roughly $700m from a state development fund meant to support Indigenous communities and peasant farmers, the same groups that formed the backbone of Morales’s Movement Toward Socialism (MAS). Arce, who sat on the board of the fund for over a decade, allegedly siphoned money for personal use.

“Arce was identified as the main person responsible for this vast economic damage,” Oviedo said.

Attorney General Roger Mariaca told local media that Arce invoked his right to remain silent during questioning. He is expected to appear before a judge on Thursday to determine whether he will remain in custody pending trial. The charges carry a maximum penalty of six years in prison.