Guatemalan president Otto Perez Molina resigned and was jailed on Thursday while a judge weighs charging him in a corruption scandal that gutted his government and plunged the country into a political crisis days before a presidential election.
In an emergency session, the Guatemalan Congress approved Perez Molina’s resignation after the retired general quit overnight. Former Guatemalan vice president Alejandro Maldonado was sworn in as president to fill out the remaining months of Perez Molina’s term.
Tens of thousands of protesters had flooded the streets of the capital and other cities in recent weeks, calling for Perez Molina, 64, to step down over allegations he was involved in a customs racket.
Celebrations over Perez Molina’s resignation erupted in a plaza of the capital on Thursday, as the country prepared for presidential and congressional elections tomorrow.
“I am going to respect due process and face this,” Perez Molina told reporters after a court hearing and before he was escorted away to jail, because he was deemed a flight risk. “I believe this is completely inconsistent.”
Perez Molina has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. The court hearing was set to continue yesterday.
In his resignation letter, submitted to congress during the night, Perez Molina said he would face the charges against him “with a clear conscience.”
Prosecutors allege he was involved in a customs scam dubbed La Linea, or “The Line,” referring to a telephone hotline used by importers to avoid paying customs duties in exchange for bribes.
Dressed in a dark suit, Perez Molina sat in the courtroom while prosecutors played telephone recordings that allegedly implicate him in the scandal.
Prosecutors have said the charges to be brought against Perez Molina are illicit association, taking bribes and customs fraud, but he has not yet been charged.
The White House said it respected Perez Molina’s decision to resign, and added that it was ready to work with Maldonado in his new role as president.
“We commend the people of Guatemala and their institutions for the manner in which they have dealt with this crisis, and continue to underscore our support for Guatemala’s democratic and constitutional institutions,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters.
Perez was elected in late 2011 after promising to fight crime and corruption. Under Guatemala’s constitution, he was not allowed to seek re-election in tomorrow’s presidential vote.
He had resisted calls for his resignation, but his options narrowed on Wednesday when lawmakers stripped him of immunity from prosecution and a judge issued a detention order against him.
Guatemalan Attorney General Thelma Albania said Perez Molina was also being investigated for money laundering, which could lead to the freezing of his assets.
Prosecutors and powerful UN-backed anti-corruption body International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala moved against Perez Molina following months of investigations and findings taken from about 89,000 telephone taps, almost 6,000 e-mails and 17 raids.
The anti-corruption investigations have also hit the center-right opposition Lider party, whose election candidate, Manuel Baldizon, had been leading the polls.
One poll published on Thursday showed independent challenger Jimmy Morales, a comic actor, edging ahead.
If no candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote tomorrow, as expected, the top two candidates will face off in a second round on Oct. 25. The next president is to take office in January.
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