ASUNCIÓN — Santiago Peña spent Friday night in custody at his Asunción residence. Hours earlier, the Senate had removed him as president of Paraguay over the collapse of Ueno Bank. Prosecutors say he must appear before them Saturday morning.

Vice President Pedro Alliana was sworn in as his successor.

The Senate voted unanimously to remove Peña, with 44 senators approving and one absent. He is only the second Paraguayan president removed through impeachment, after Fernando Lugo in 2012. Peña also lost the immunity the office carried.

Prosecutors acted almost immediately following the country’s banking crisis. The Public Ministry said the agents handling the Ueno Bank case detained Peña and former central bank president Carlos Carvallo Spalding for the alleged commission of “lesión de confianza” (breach of trust) and other offenses.

The arrest at Peña’s home happened at the same time as the ceremony in Congress where Alliana took the oath.

What Happens Now

Prosecutor Silvia González confirmed Peña remains detained at home and will appear Saturday, Nov. 7, at 11 a.m. before the Economic Crimes and Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.

After receiving his statement, or recording that he declined to give one, prosecutors must file formal charges and request precautionary measures from the duty criminal guarantees court. That court will then schedule a hearing to decide his legal status, including whether he stays at home or is held elsewhere.

Prosecutors are weighing breach of trust, influence peddling and self-interested administration.

Santiago Peña. Credit: Bloomberg

The probe covers alleged irregularities in the supervision of Ueno, possible conflicts of interest tied to Peña’s links to Grupo Vázquez, and the placement of public funds in the bank, including money from the state pension and health fund IPS and the Caja Fiscal.

Peña was a business partner of Grupo Vázquez, the conglomerate that owns Ueno, until March 2025. According to the AP, the bank says he was never a shareholder or investor. The complaint includes Peña’s 2023 asset declaration of an equity stake in Ueno Holding and a bond.

Peña’s Defense

Peña’s official statement on the matter, “I submitted my resignation to avoid more harm to the country.” His lawyer, Ricardo Preda, said there were “basic violations of due process” in the impeachment, according to the same live blog. As previously reported, Congress did not accept Peña’s resignation and moved ahead with removal.

Alliana is expected to serve out the term until 2028 and has pledged to compensate those affected by the collapse.

Ueno has about 3 million customers and, per the AP, held roughly $800 million to $850 million in public money. Each depositor is guaranteed up to 228 million guaraníes, about $38,000, and about 97% of balances fall within that guarantee, according to preliminary central bank estimates cited by the AP.

Paraguayan deputies put the losses in the Ueno case at $1.2 billion. That figure is attributed to lawmakers and has not been independently confirmed.