Guatemala prosecutors raid 26 properties in graft case
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Prosecutors in Guatemala raided 26 properties and detained seven people Wednesday in connection with a 2014-2015 corruption case that helped lead to the resignation of former president Otto Perez Molina.
Perez Molina and his vice president Roxana Baldetti resigned in 2015 and have been in custody on charges of permitting and benefiting from a customs graft scheme known as La Linea, or “The Line.”
The scheme involved a conspiracy to defraud the state by letting businesses evade import duties in exchange for bribes. Dozens of people are under investigation in connection with the “Linea” case, which involved about $1 million in bribes and $2 million in lost income for the government.
Those involved in the scheme also allegedly include customs officials, business people and others.
