Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—Bolivia’s Prosecutor’s Office condemned the “kidnapping” of Attorney General Roger Mariaca and Santa Cruz departmental prosecutor Alberto Zeballos following their arrest at Viru Viru International Airport on Wednesday night, September 30. The operation came as prosecutors investigated Fernando Cerimedo, the far-right Argentinian political operative and former adviser to Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz.Officials from the Prosecutor’s Office condemned violations of institutional independence and human rights. Police subsequently intervened in prosecution offices in several cities and searched Mariaca’s residence in Santa Cruz. Beller’s lawyer, Jerjes Justiniano, said the arrests were carried out without a judicial order.On Thursday, Government Minister Marco Antonio Oviedo presented the operation as a fight against “narcoterrorism,” alleging that Mariaca headed a criminal protection network. Mariaca has rejected allegations that he facilitated drug trafficking.The arrests followed Washington’s September 28 announcement of visa restrictions against Bolivian officials, including both prosecutors. Mariaca repudiated the US accusations and defended the independence of Bolivia’s Prosecutor’s Office, insisting that the Cerimedo investigation would continue despite pressure.Luis Montaño and Mabel Andrade were announced as interim replacements for Mariaca and Zeballos, respectively. However, Oviedo subsequently refused to accept Montaño’s appointment, saying the legislature must choose the new attorney general.An investigation reaching into the presidential circleCerimedo was arrested in August after his former partner, lawyer Nadia Beller, survived a shooting in Santa Cruz. She accuses him of organizing the assassination attempt to silence her over alleged corruption involving figures close to the government.The co-founder of La Derecha Diario, Cerimedo participated in Javier Milei’s presidential campaign and advised President Paz. He remains in pretrial detention at Chonchocoro prison, where he was transferred in September in connection with a money-laundering investigation. Separate proceedings concern attempted femicide, domestic violence, and alleged protection of drug-trafficking flights in Beni.Justiniano linked the arrests to efforts to stop the Cerimedo investigation, arguing that the case was reaching deeply into the inner workings of the Paz administration.Beller likewise accused the Bolivian government of removing those investigating Cerimedo. She warned that police intervention in prosecution offices endangered documents, phones, recordings, and other evidence. Her warning concerns the risk of interference; the disappearance of evidence has not been independently established.Alleged protection of drug-trafficking flightsThe Beni case concerns allegations that Cerimedo helped protect irregular flights associated with drug trafficking. On September 28, Vice President Edmand Lara presented a recording attributed to Cerimedo and a woman discussing payments for aircraft operations. Lara alleged coordination involving former anti-drug police chief Colonel Cabrera and the state airport authority, NAABOL.The conversation discusses payments of US $15,000 per aircraft and influence over airport personnel. Bolpress’s examination of the recording found that the currency and date were not specified and that prosecutors had not independently confirmed its authenticity.Trump’s circle and alleged CIA connectionOn September 29, Beller published photographs showing Cerimedo with Donald Trump Jr. and former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale. She questioned whether Washington’s measures targeted corruption or protected a political network associated with Trump’s MAGA movement.Beller also says Cerimedo claimed to belong to the CIA. According to her account, reported by La Jornada, he boasted of substantial monthly earnings and kept large amounts of cash in their shared residence. A house search carried out by Bolivian authorities corroborated the claim that there were exorbitant amounts of cash in Cerimedo’s houses. She alleges that his income included proceeds from corruption involving the Paz government.For Beller and her defense team, the central question is whether Washington’s alleged anti-drug campaign is being used to shield a far-right operative and his political protectors. Their demand is that Bolivia’s investigations proceed independently, with evidence preserved and without US pressure determining whom is investigated by Bolivian institutions.Evo Morales condemns US interferenceFormer Bolivian President Evo Morales said on Thursday, October 1, that the arrests of Attorney General Mariaca and Santa Cruz departmental prosecutor Alberto Zeballos confirmed that “the United States governs Bolivia.” Speaking on Radio Kawsachun Coca, he denounced what he described as “open and direct intervention” against prosecutors investigating Fernando Cerimedo.Cerimedo Case: Nadia Beller Records Statement Before Attorney GeneralMorales argued that President Rodrigo Paz’s recent visit to the United States involved deciding whom to pursue and arrest to protect the former presidential adviser. He also warned that former ministers could become targets. “Saving Cerimedo means saving President Paz and his family,” he added.Morales has separately described Cerimedo as a CIA operative in Bolivia. Neither allegation amounts to independently verified evidence of CIA employment, but both place the question of foreign interference squarely within the political controversy surrounding the case. Special for Orinoco Tribune by staffOT/JRE/SL