Bolivian court orders ex-president jailed for 5 months on corruption charges

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — A Bolivian court on Friday ordered the country's former President Luis Arce to remain detained for five months while he awaits trial on corruption charges, the latest development in a case that threatens to exacerbate Bolivia's political tensions.

Arce, 62, a leader from Bolivia’s Movement Toward Socialism party, was elected in 2020 and left office a month ago following the election of Bolivia's first right-wing leader in nearly two decades. He strongly denies the charges of breach of duty and financial misconduct. He faces up to six years in prison if convicted.

Two days after Arce's sudden arrest on the streets of Bolivia's capital of La Paz, a judge ordered his detention in a virtual hearing Friday.

Arce was transferred to one of Bolivia's largest prisons in La Paz at night. No trial date was announced.

The accusations concern the alleged diversion of millions of dollars from a state fund into private accounts and date back to when Arce served as economy minister under former President Evo Morales from 2006 until 2017.

Although the scandal first broke in 2017, investigations into the alleged graft stalled during Morales' presidency as Bolivia's courts proved submissive to the political power of the day. The case was reopened when conservative President Rodrigo Paztook office last month, ending almost two decades of dominance by the Movement Toward Socialism, or MAS, party.

Paz campaigned on a promise to clean up the government and seek justice for corruption as he rode to power on a wave of outrage over Bolivia's worst economic crisis in four decades.

Arce criticized the charges as political persecution.

“I’m a scapegoat,” he told the judge, insisting that he had no personal involvement in the government fund under scrutiny, which supported the Indigenous people and peasant farmers who formed the backbone of MAS support.

“The accusations are politically motivated.”

Officials involved in the previous iteration of the investigation say Arce is accused of siphoning off money from rural development projects to secure loyalty from MAS-allied union and Indigenous leaders during election campaigns.

Morales was elected to three consecutive terms, but was ousted in 2019 when his reelection to an unprecedented fourth term sparked accusations of fraud and mass protests.

Arce's lawyers asked the judge to grant his release pending trial, citing the ex-president's battle with kidney cancer several years ago.

But Judge Elmer Laura denied the appeal, and even exceeded the prosecution’s request of three months in a juvenile detention center by ordering five months in a state prison.

“These are crimes that directly affect state assets and resources that were allocated to vulnerable sectors," Laura said.

Isabel DeBre in Santiago, Chile, contributed to this report.

Police officers escort former President Luis Arce to San Pedro Prison after his arrest as part of a corruption investigation in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Police officers escort former President Luis Arce to San Pedro Prison after his arrest as part of a corruption investigation in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Former President Luis Arce comments to the press as he is escorted to San Pedro Prison after his arrest as part of a corruption investigation in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Police officers escort former President Luis Arce to San Pedro Prison after his arrest as part of a corruption investigation in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles Angels first baseman Trey Mancini, a cancer survivor and former Baltimore slugger, played in his first major league game since 2023 on Monday night against the Houston Astros.

Mancini delivered a run-scoring single in the second inning in his first at-bat.

The Angels selected the contract of Mancini and put him in the lineup at first base against the Astros after placing infielders Vaughn Grissom (left oblique strain) and Adam Frazier (right elbow inflammation) on the 10-day injured list.

Mancini, 34, agreed to a minor league contract with the Angels in February, a deal that included an invitation to major league spring training. Mancini hit .273 with six homers, 29 RBIs and three steals for Salt Lake this year.

Mancini has batted .263 with 129 homers and 400 RBIs over parts of seven seasons in the majors. He played parts of six seasons with the Orioles and hit a career-high 29 homers in 2019.

Mancini then missed the 2020 season after surgery to remove a malignant tumor from his colon. He made a successful return to the Orioles in 2021, and he won a World Series ring in 2022 after Baltimore traded him to Houston.

He spent part of the 2023 season with the Chicago Cubs. He has since played in the minor league systems of the Reds, Marlins and Diamondbacks.

Mancini opted out of a minor league deal with Arizona last July after batting .308 with 16 homers for Triple-A Reno.

Grissom’s move to the IL was retroactive to Friday. Frazier’s move was retroactive to Saturday.

The Angeles also recalled infielder Denzer Guzman from Triple-A Salt Lake and transferred infielder Yoán Moncada to the 60-day injured list.

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Los Angeles Angels' Logan O'Hoppe, left, scores after a single by Vaughn Grissom and a throwing error by Sterlin Thompson as Colorado Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman misses the ball during the second inning of a baseball game Wednesday, June 3, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)