The Supreme Court of Peru declared unfounded the appeal filed by former Peruvian president Pedro Castillo against the preventive detention he has been serving since 2022, following his failed coup attempt. This means that he will remain in prison while being investigated for the crime of rebellion.
The Permanent Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court, presided over by César San Martín, argued that "the risk of evading justice remains latent; in addition to a request for a very high sentence and the admissibility of the oral trial dictated by the investigating judge".
For this case, the Prosecutor's Office has requested 34 years of imprisonment for Castillo and a ban on holding public office for three and a half years, accusing him of rebellion, abuse of authority, and serious disturbance of public tranquility to the detriment of the State and society.
The supreme court also highlighted that no new means of investigation have emerged that change Castillo's legal situation; therefore, it is not appropriate to revoke the preventive detention, as the defensive appeal cannot prosper.
Regarding the danger of flight, the judges noted that after the coup announcement on December 7, 2022, and his attempt to reach the Mexican Embassy in Lima, there are previously valued statements and the public statements of then-Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador about a request for political asylum.
López Obrador mentioned that Castillo contacted him for this purpose, and therefore coordinated with the ambassador to facilitate his entry into the embassy premises. Castillo's wife and their two minor children are sheltered in Mexico by the decision of the Mexican president, while the former Peruvian president is detained and being prosecuted in Lima.
