Human Rights
Newspaper director convicted of money laundering in Nicaragua
He claims he is being targeted solely for being related to the Chamorro siblings, who were sentenced earlier this week
March 24, 2022 5:29pm
Updated: March 24, 2022 6:50pm
\Director of Nicaraguan newspaper La Prensa, Juan Lorenzo Holmann Chamorro, was found guilty of money laundering by the regime of Daniel Ortega, reported Reuters. Critics believe the move was politically motivated.
Holmann Chamorro was arrested in August after the police raided the newspaper’s office as part of an investigation of an alleged customs fraud. His sentence is expected to be issued on March 31, according to La Prensa.
His sentence comes a few days after judges also found Holmann’s cousins, Cristiana Chamorro and Pedro Joaquin Chamorro, guilty of money laundering and misusing funds. The Chamorro siblings, political opponents of the regime, were sentenced to prison.
He claims he is innocent and was targeted solely for being related to the Chamorro siblings, children of former President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, who defeated Ortega in the 90s.
“I feel proud to belong to the family that I have, where my parents raised me with moral and Christian values, here what they have said are lies and falsehoods about me,” Holmann said during his trial.
“I am innocent and have committed no crime. If I am going to be punished for having the last name of Chamorro as my second name, I am willing to comply,” he added
