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FILE - In this May 21, 2021 record photo, Cristiana Chamorro, erstwhile manager of the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation for Reconciliation and Democracy, and girl of a erstwhile president, arrives astatine the nationalist Ministry wherever she was called for a gathering to explicate alleged "inconsistencies" successful fiscal reports filed with the authorities betwixt 2015 and 2019 successful Managua, Nicaragua. Nicaraguan authorities person accused connected Tuesday, August 24, 2021, each of the children of erstwhile President Violeta Chamorro, writer Carlos Fernando Chamorro who is successful exile successful Costa Rica, Cristiana Chamorro who was moving for president earlier being thrown into location apprehension and Pedro Juaquin Chamorro who has been imprisoned, connected wealth laundering charges. ( AP Photo/Esteban Felix, File)

MANAGUA – One-time Nicaragua statesmanlike aspirant Cristiana Chamorro and 1 of her brothers were among 5 radical formally charged with wealth laundering Thursday, prosecutors announced.

In a statement, prosecutors said Chamorro, Pedro Joaquín Chamorro and 3 erstwhile employees of the Violeta Barrios de Chamorro Foundation volition beryllium tried for wealth laundering and different alleged crimes.

Cristiana Chamorro has been nether location apprehension since June 2. Her apprehension was 1 of the archetypal of a question of detentions against absorption leaders, including 7 imaginable statesmanlike candidates. President Daniel Ortega is seeking a 4th consecutive word successful bureau Nov. 7.

Chamorro has maintained her innocence. She is the girl of erstwhile President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro.

To wide the way toward re-election, Ortega's authorities has moved against a fig of nongovernmental organizations it views arsenic opposition. The president has claimed that organizations receiving backing from overseas were portion of a broader conspiracy to region him from bureau successful 2018.

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Following the apprehension of Chamorro and different erstwhile instauration employees, the U.S. State Department said successful a statement, “Their detention connected trumped up charges is an maltreatment of their rights, and it represents an battle connected antiauthoritarian values arsenic good arsenic a wide effort to thwart escaped and just elections."

In January, she stepped down from her relation astatine the foundation. A period later, it closed its operations successful Nicaragua aft transition of a “foreign agents” instrumentality designed to way overseas backing of organizations operating successful the country.

The nongovernmental Nicaraguan Human Rights Center said Thursday the proceeding took spot astatine the Managua situation wherever galore governmental prisoners are being held. There was nary entree for household members oregon the public.

Prosecutors said Thursday that 5 different accused successful the case, including different Chamorro brother, writer Carlos Fernando Chamorro, are fugitives successful the case.

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