LIMA (Reuters) - Peruvian ex-President Pedro Castillo’s pre-trial detention in prison was extended to 18 months on Thursday, as deadly protests extended into a second week.
In Thursday’s ruling, a judicial panel in the country’s apex court ruled that Castillo, initially jailed for seven days, will continue to be in detention as prosecutors continue their investigation into the criminal charges against him.
The verdict did not address the charges against the embattled former president, who has been charged with rebellion and conspiracy, but a Supreme Court judge who presided over the panel cited the risk of him fleeing the country.
Castillo has denied all the accusations against him, saying he is being “unjustly and arbitrarily detained” at a police facility near the capital, Lima.
Protesters in Peru have demanded his release from prison, as well as fresh elections and the removal of his successor, Dina Boluarte.
They gathered outside the prison where he was held, holding banners against Boluarte and calling for Congress to be shut down.
They have threatened the logistics of major copper mines and led to curfews across the Andean nation.
According to officials, at least 15 people have been killed in the protests so far that have roiled the country since last week.
Castillo, a former teacher and the son of peasant farmers, won a narrow victory in last year’s election under the banner of the Pro-Marxist Free Party.
But he was ousted by a landslide vote of lawmakers who accused him of moral turpitude just hours after ordering Congress to dissolve on December 7.
Four countries led by leftist presidents – Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia and Mexico – signed a joint statement this week declaring Castillo a “victim of undemocratic harassment”.
A bloc of leftist countries that met in Havana, including Cuba, Bolivia, Venezuela and Nicaragua, also supported the jailed leader, rejecting what they called the political actions of right-wing forces.
Foreign Minister Ana Cecilia Gervasi, newly appointed after Bulvarte replaced Castillo last week, responded Thursday morning by summoning Peruvian ministers in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia and Mexico for consultations.
Dozens of Castillo’s supporters have camped outside the prison where he is being held in Lima to demand his release. The indigenous people of the Peruvian Amazon forest in the center and southeast have also joined the protests.