The Bolivian attorney general has initiated an investigation into former leftist president Evo Morales, citing allegations of his involvement in the murder and torture of European nationals in 2009.
In 2009, police conducted a raid on a Santa Cruz hotel, resulting in the deaths of Eduardo Rózsa Flores, a Bolivian-Croatian, Michael Dwyer, an Irishman, and Árpád Magyarosi, a Hungarian-Romanian. Survivors, including Mario Tadic from Bolivia and Elöd Tóásó from Hungary, reported being tortured following their arrest.
At the time, the Morales administration claimed Rózsa Flores was involved in a separatist movement funded by Santa Cruz's right-wing economic elite. The investigation was announced by acting attorney general José Armando Urioste shortly after his appointment, stating that authorities are collecting evidence against Morales and former vice-president Álvaro García Linera for alleged crimes of murder, abuse, torture, and unlawful detention.
This investigation follows a complaint from right-wing lawmakers Tomasa Yarhui and Rodrigo Antonio. During the 2009 raid, Morales, then-president, stated during a visit to Venezuela that he had ordered the detention of the foreigners, referring to them as "mercenaries."
The case was taken to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which, in 2021, found that the Bolivian government had violated human rights. Neither Morales nor García Linera have commented on the recent inquiry.
Morales, Bolivia's first Indigenous president, is currently in hiding, facing two active arrest warrants. One is related to his alleged role in prolonged protests earlier this year, and the other involves accusations of trafficking a minor. Morales denies these allegations.
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