Ousted Paraguayan president appears before prosecutors

Paraguay's Senate removed President Santiago Peña from office on Friday, and prosecutors put him under house arrest over the failure of Ueno Bank. The lender, which is U.S.-owned, had roughly 3 million customers, over half of Paraguay's adult population, and its collapse has cut millions of people off from their savings. Peña, a shareholder in the bank, appeared before prosecutors Saturday morning, according to NPR.

Senators voted unanimously, per the chamber's website, to convict him of malfeasance. Lawmakers contended that his ties to the bank put state assets at risk and enriched him personally. Prosecutors added a breach of trust charge, among others. Peña, one of Washington's closest regional partners, denies wrongdoing. He offered to resign Thursday, but legislators declined and pressed ahead with removal. He said, "I want to apologize to the Paraguayan people if I have failed you."

Vice President Pedro Alliana was sworn in to finish the term, which runs to August 2028, and pledged to compensate those who lost money. The central bank took control of Ueno on Tuesday, saying its solvency ratio fell below legal standards.

Summarized by PolitiKool from NPR’s reporting. Read the full story at NPR →