Trial Ordered for Ex-Leader of Guatemala

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/09/world/americas/trial-ordered-for-ex-leader-of-guatemala.html

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GUATEMALA CITY — A Guatemalan judge ordered former President Otto Pérez Molina on Tuesday to stand trial on charges of bribery, customs fraud and conspiracy, and returned him to detention.

It was the third day in court for Mr. Pérez Molina, 64, a retired general who resigned last week, amid mass protests, just days before Sunday’s election to choose his successor. In court, he betrayed little emotion, tightening his lips when Judge Miguel Ángel Gálvez announced the ruling.

“I am frustrated,” Mr. Pérez Molina said, rising at the end of the hearing to deny any involvement in the crimes. If “this can happen to someone who resigned the presidency, what can happen to an ordinary citizen?” he asked.

Judge Gálvez rejected the defense request for bail and sent Mr. Pérez Molina back to the military barracks where he has been held since Thursday. The judge gave prosecutors until December to prepare an expanded case against Mr. Pérez Molina.

The drama has upended this small country since April, when prosecutors first revealed the existence of a multimillion-dollar customs fraud ring that took bribes in exchange for discounts on import duties.

Week after week, thousands of people filled Guatemala City’s central square to demand the resignation first of Roxana Baldetti, the vice president, and then of Mr. Pérez Molina. Ms. Baldetti, who stepped down in May, was charged in the case two weeks ago.

The outpouring against corruption not only toppled the government but also appeared to affect Sunday’s election, which will head to a runoff.

The longtime front-runner, Manuel Baldizón, who had spent lavishly and long kept up his support for Mr. Pérez Molina, appeared unlikely to reach the second round.

The television comedian Jimmy Morales garnered the most votes, apparently benefiting from his position as a political outsider. As the last votes were being counted on Tuesday, Sandra Torres, a former first lady, was fewer than 5,000 votes ahead of Mr. Baldizón. If her advantage holds, she will face Mr. Morales in an Oct. 25 runoff election.