Bogota, Colombia – Guatemala’s Supreme Court dismissed 26 arrest warrants issued by the prosecutor’s office last year targeting prominent figures, including Colombia’s Prosecutor General Luz Adriana Camargo.
In a decision made public on Monday, the country’s high court ruled last June that prosecutors had no authority to issue warrants.
The court order marks a setback for Guatemala’s prosecutorial office, which human rights groups have criticized as a rogue and politically motivated agency.
In its ruling, the Supreme Court stated, “(The prosecution) exceeded its legal authority by illegally issuing an arrest warrant without legal authority.”
He added, “Issuing an arrest warrant is within the authority of the judge supervising the investigation.”
In addition to targeting Camargo, the warrant issued last year called for the arrest of Ivan Velasquez, the former Colombian defense minister and current nuncio to the Holy See.
Two senior Colombian officials have been charged with obstruction of justice, corruption and influence peddling while overseeing an investigation into bribes paid by Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht to Guatemalan officials.
Camargo and Velasquez helped lead the United Nations-backed International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). This committee investigated the Odebrecht case. The Odebrecht case was a massive corruption scandal in which a construction company was found guilty of bribing officials in 10 Latin American countries.
But the warrant, led by Guatemalan prosecutor Rafael Curruchiche, was widely criticized at the time.
The Guatemalan government condemned the measures, writing that “these measures are not based on national or international legal systems and are carried out with a clear political purpose.”
“This is part of a series of actions by the Prosecutor’s Office, the Attorney General of the Republic and judges linked to corruption that have distorted the meaning of justice in Guatemala,” the Guatemalan government added at the time.
For years, Guatemala has seen a power struggle between the government and the attorney general’s office, led by Maria Consuelo Porras.
Consuelo Porras has been criticized by human rights groups for his efforts to block anti-corruption efforts at home and has been sanctioned by 40 countries, including the United States.
Prosecutors Curucice have also been widely criticized for interfering with the democratic process, including suspending then-presidential candidate Bernardo Arevalo’s party in the 2023 election. Arevalo went on to win.
Following the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning the warrant, Curruchiche said he would launch an appeal to the Constitutional Court.
Featured image caption: Colombian Justice Minister Luz Adriana Camargo delivers a speech.
Featured image credit: @FiscaliaCol via X
