Government confirmed the death of Evoist leader involved with Chapare criminal network

The government confirmed the death of Jhonny Cruz, an Evista leader, in a police operation carried out in Chapare. According to the Deputy Minister of Interior Regime, Jhonny Aguilera, Cruz was linked to a criminal network dedicated to kidnapping and murder. The operation was conducted in search of Ariel Villarroel, another alleged member of the organization. During the intervention, Cruz allegedly fired at the police officers, and the agents reacted in self-defense. The former dictator Evo Morales denounced the event as a murder and blamed the government for Cruz's death. He claimed that the leader was intercepted by civilians in an unmarked vehicle. According to his version, he tried to defend himself, which led to a shootout in which he was killed. Morales demanded the arrest of the police officer who shot Cruz, giving the government a 48-hour deadline to act. Deputy Minister Aguilera denied Morales's version and assured that it was not a murder. Aguilera explained that Cruz fired first at the police, which forced the agents to respond. He clarified that Cruz was wounded in the leg and that his death was due to the time elapsed without medical attention. He highlighted that the deceased's family did not claim his body for five days, which reinforces the hypothesis of his involvement with criminal groups.

Does Evo Morales support criminals?

peasant movementLeonardo Lozawarned that any confrontation with the union guard will be the government's responsibility.the coca leader seeks to provoke confrontations between the population and the policecivil groupsnormalization of violence by certain union and coca leaders, who do not hesitate to open fire or attack police authorities