RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The National Police reported on Tuesday that it has detained opposition presidential hopeful Felix Maradiaga, who is being investigated by the Public Prosecutor’s Office for “inciting foreign interference in internal affairs”.
Maradiaga, an academic and activist, was detained after appearing to testify before the Public Prosecutor’s Office, where he was confirmed that an investigation had been opened against him, for which, he told reporters, he was prepared for whatever might come.
Maradiaga becomes the third opposition presidential hopeful to be investigated and detained five months before the general elections, in which the country’s president, Sandinista Daniel Ortega, is seeking re-election.
Nicaraguan opposition presidential hopeful Arturo Cruz was arrested this Saturday at the Augusto C. Sandino International Airport, after he returned from a tour in the United States, he informed the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
A Nicaraguan judge issued last Wednesday a search and arrest warrant against the opposition presidential candidate Cristiana María Chamorro Barrios, who was accused the day before by the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the crimes of abusive management and ideological falsehood, both in real concurrence with money laundering, property, and assets.
Chamorro Barrios is the opposition figure with the highest probability of winning the November elections, in which President Daniel Ortega seeks new reelection.