US names Bar Alejandro Giammattei, former Guatemalan leader

Ruling against Alejandro Giammattei, accused of accepting bribes, signals U.S. support for new anti-corruption campaign in Guatemala .

The State Department said Wednesday that Alejandro Giammattei, Guatemala's president until a tumultuous transfer of power this week, had been barred from entry into the United States due to what officials said was information that he had accepted bribes. This announcement signals that the The United States is moving quickly to support the anti-corruption campaign led by Guatemala's new president, Bernardo Arévalo. Guatemala has recently been plunged into protests against attempts to prevent Mr Arévalo from taking office, and Mr Giammattei refused to appear at his successor's inauguration on Monday.

“No one, especially a public official, is above the law,” said Brian Nichols, the top State Department official for the Western Hemisphere.

The Treasury Department also announced sanctions against Alberto on Wednesday. Pimentel Mata, a former energy minister in Mr. Giammattei's government, in connection with Mr. Pimentel Mata's bribery and involvement in numerous corruption schemes related to government contracts and licenses, officials said .

Last weekend, U.S. Customs and Border Protection denied entry into Miami to one of Mr. Giammattei's sons and expelled him on Monday, according to Senator Mike Lee, Republican of Utah and a supporter of Mr. Giammattei.

Together, these measures reflect the way the government of the United States is trying to stem corruption and impunity in Guatemala, the most populous country in Central America.

While Mr. Giammattei was president, From 2020 to 2024, an alliance of prosecutors, judges, members of Congress and other political figures retaliated against officials involved in a pioneering anti-corruption initiative supported by the United Nations.

“The State Department has credible information indicating that Giammattei accepted bribes in exchange for carrying out his public duties during his term as president,” Matthew Miller said , spokesperson for the State Department, in a press release.

The former president is now “generally ineligible” to enter the United States, Mr. Miller added, although he did not provide information specific on the bribes accused by Mr. Giammattei. to accept.

The former president was not immediately available for comment.

Accounts of the Mr. Giammattei's involvement in corruption schemes has been circulating for years in Guatemala. In 2021, prosecutors opened an investigation into allegations that Russian citizens paid a bribe to Mr. Giammattei in connection with a mining project, after an anti-corruption prosecutor obtained testimony from a witness who said he went to Mr. Giammattei's home and delivered a rolled up piece of paper. a carpet full of money.

During his tenure, Mr. Giammattei denied being bribed as part of the Russian project.

Investigations into these allegations have not made much progress in Guatemala's opaque justice system. In the affair of the carpet stuffed with money...