Bolivia arrests former senior judge in drug trafficking probe

Bolivian authorities have arrested former senior judge Aldo Quezada in Santa Cruz on suspicion of drug trafficking and criminal association. Prosecutor Marcelo Inchausti said Quezada was detained at his home in eastern Bolivia on Wednesday. The arrest is part of a wider crackdown on officials suspected of links to cartel activity.

Inchausti told reporters that Quezada had resigned last month as chief justice of the Santa Cruz departmental court after being placed on a United States visa restrictions list over alleged links to drug trafficking. The case comes amid a broader anti-cartel push involving Bolivian authorities and a US-backed security alliance in the region. The United States has also cancelled visas for officials in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru under the same policy.

Quezada is one of several senior Bolivian judicial figures arrested since September on suspicion of ties to drug cartels. Among them is former Attorney General Roger Mariaca, who was arrested on 30 September on suspicion of money laundering and drug trafficking. Police said they found bundles of cash smuggled out of his house during that operation.

The sequence of arrests has drawn attention to alleged corruption inside parts of Bolivia's justice system. The case matters because it sits at the intersection of organised crime, judicial integrity and foreign policy. Bolivia's conservative President Rodrigo Paz took office on 8 November 2025, ending nearly 20 years of Movement for Socialism rule, and has moved to strengthen ties with Washington.

He has also signed Bolivia up to the US-backed Shield of the Americas security alliance, which is aimed at countering criminal networks across the region. The arrest also follows a period of heightened scrutiny of Bolivian nationals by the United States. In September, the Trump administration imposed visa restrictions on twelve Bolivian nationals and their families, according to a statement from the US State Department.

That measure was presented as part of a broader effort to target alleged cartel-linked officials. The latest detention suggests the campaign is continuing to reach into senior legal and political circles. What remains unclear is how far the investigation will extend and whether more arrests will follow.

Authorities have not publicly detailed the evidence against Quezada beyond the suspicion of drug trafficking and criminal association. It is also not yet clear whether the case will lead to further action against other current or former officials. For now, the arrest adds to a fast-moving anti-corruption and anti-cartel drive that is reshaping Bolivia's political and judicial landscape.

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