Former President Pedro Castillo is accused of 'carrying out a coup d'état' after he tried to dissolve Congress in 2022.
Peru's prosecutors have formally requested 34 years in prison for former President Pedro Castillo, who was dramatically removed from office and arrested following his attempt to dissolve Congress at the end of 2022.
Castillo, whose ouster sparked months of deadly protests that hit the key mining sector in the copper-rich country, remains in pretrial detention.
On Friday, the prosecution wrote on social media that it was asking for a prison sentence for “crimes of rebellion, abuse of authority and serious disruption of public order.”
In the application submitted to the court, Castillo is accused of “carrying out a coup d'état.”
Castillo, a former teacher from rural Peru, elected in 2012, was the Andean nation's first leader without ties to elites and was hailed as the country's first poor president.
Once he took office, the leftist leader became embroiled in a power struggle with the opposition-led Congress and was accused by the attorney general of leading a criminal organization involving his family and allies that awarded public contracts to money exchange.
Before his dismissal in December 2022, Castillo said the plan to “temporarily” dissolve Congress was to “reestablish the rule of law and democracy” in the country.
However, opposition politicians said the decision went against Peru's constitution and Congress voted overwhelmingly to remove him from the country's top office.
Castillo has argued that he was the victim of a political conspiracy between the right-wing opposition and the attorney general.
“I never took up arms,” he has said in court hearings since his arrest.
Castillo was replaced by his vice president, Dina Boluarte, who faced protests when some called on her to resign and hold early elections.
A crackdown by security forces killed about 50 people, according to an estimate by Human Rights Watch, which accused Peruvian authorities of extrajudicial and arbitrary executions.
Although Boluarte faces an investigation into the deaths of the protesters, he maintains immunity until his term ends in 2026.
