Former Paraguay President detained following impeachment over banking scandal

Former Paraguayan President Santiago Peña is facing criminal charges for breach of trust and mismanagement for personal gain, following his impeachment on Friday. Judge Hernán Otazú ordered Peña into pretrial detention after prosecutors sought to freeze his assets and those of the former Central Bank governor, Carlos Carvalho, who faces identical charges. The Senate voted unanimously to remove the 47-year-old leader from office due to the collapse of the digital bank "Ueno," which left approximately three million customers—nearly half the country's population—unable to access their deposits. Peña, who had lost the support of his conservative party, was succeeded by his deputy, Pedro Alliana. The new administration has pledged to protect depositors' rights amidst ongoing public protests demanding the recovery of frozen funds.