July, 19 2017 (Panampost) The former Advisor to Bolivian President Evo Morales was arrested in Sao Paulo, Brazil this July 7 for cocaine possession. Rómer Gutiérrez Quesada, the leader of the Che Guevara MAS-ISPS organization and prominent member of the Movement Toward Socialism Party, was found with 100 bricks of pure cocaine with a weight [...]

July, 19 2917 (Panampost) United States President Donald Trump and his administration are preparing to impose “strong and swift” sanctions on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s regime, the The Wall Street Journal reported July 19. Should the dictatorial regime continue with its plans to rewrite the country’s constitution by means of a Constituent Assembly, sanctions would [...]

July, 18 2017 (BBC) The former governor of the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz has arrived back on home soil, after being extradited from Guatemala. Javier Duarte has been charged with corruption, money laundering and involvement in organised crime. Mr Duarte resigned his post in October 2016. He has rejected the allegations and vowed to [...]

July, 19 2017 (BBC) Uruguay has become the first country in the world to legally sell marijuana for recreational use. Sixteen pharmacies started dispensing marijuana on Wednesday, Almost 5,000 people have signed up to a national registry to be able to buy marijuana legally. They will be able to buy up to 10g (0.35oz) a [...]

July, 13 2017 /CNN) Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brazil's former President, was found guilty Wednesday of corruption and money laundering charges, a representative of the federal court in Parana state told CNN. Brazilian Federal Judge Sergio Moro sentenced Lula da Silva to nine-and-a-half years in jail. He will remain free during his appeal, and [...]

July, 16 2017 (Huffpost) CARACAS, July 16 (Reuters) - Gunmen in Venezuela shot into a crowd of voters on Sunday, activists said, killing one woman and wounding three others during an unofficial referendum organized by the opposition to push for an end to two decades of socialist rule. The opposition Democratic Unity coalition said a [...]

July, 13 2017 (BBC) Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been convicted of corruption charges and sentenced to nine and a half years in prison. The judge ruled he could remain free pending an appeal. Lula has rejected claims that he received an apartment as a bribe in a corruption scandal linked [...]

July, 11 2017 (Panampost) Edwin Rivera Paz, a Honduran journalist who was taking refuge in Mexico due to death threats he had received in his country, was killed last Monday in Acayucan, Veracruz, by an armed unit that was travelling by motorcycle, according to Ruben Figueroa, director of the Mesoamerican Migrant Movement. Rivera Paz, 28, [...]

July, 11 2017 (Reuters) LIMA (Reuters) - A prosecutor in Peru is seeking up to 18 months in jail for former president Ollanta Humala and his wife to keep them from fleeing the country while money laundering charges are prepared against them, according to a request made public on Tuesday. Prosecutor German Juarez, in the [...]

July, 11 2017 (BBC) International experts investigating the suspected abduction and murder of 43 students in Mexico three years ago were targeted with government spyware, an internet watchdog says. The Israeli-made spyware was only sold to governments, according to Citizen Lab, which is based in Canada. Mexican journalists, human rights activists and opposition politicians have [...]

July, 11 2017 (BBC) While US President Donald Trump's proposed Mexican border wall has garnered much international attention, another controversial wall has sprung up further south. It stands between Ecuador and Peru, and, even though it only spans 1km (0.6 miles), the Peruvians are not happy. On Monday, Peru recalled its ambassador to Ecuador in [...]

July, 9 2017 (CNN) Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez, whose imprisonment has been a rallying cry for anti-regime demonstrators, has been released to house arrest because of health concerns, the nation's Supreme Court said Saturday morning. Lopez has been detained since early 2014 over accusations of inciting anti-government protests. "By the power of Supreme Court [...]