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The president of Peru has had her home raided by government agents investigating her over a collection of luxury watches.
TV footage sweeping the country late Friday night showed officers using a sledgehammer to smash their way into Dina Boluarte’s residence in the capital Lima.
It comes after prosecutors opened an inquiry following a report by internet program La-Encerrona that the president possessed several Rolex watches.
The probe intended to establish whether there were grounds for a formal investigation of the president.
Boluarte has acknowledged that she owns Rolex watches, which she said she had bought with money she earned since she was young and urged the media not to delve into personal matters.
But attorney general Juan Villena said she is obliged to promptly produce three Rolex watches as part of the probe, warning her not to hide or destroy them.
He also criticised her request to delay her appearance before the court for two weeks.
Peru’s President Dina Boluarte (Picture: AFP via Getty)
Police guard outside President Dina Boluarte’s house during a raid (Picture: AP)
Police break open the door in a raid (Picture: Reuters)
Evidence is gathered as part of a preliminary investigation in Lima (Picture: AFP via Getty)
Political turmoil is nothing new in Peru, which has seen six presidents in the last five years.
Earlier this month, Boluarte said she entered the president’s office with her hands clean and would leave with her hands clean.
The 61-year-old lawyer ascended from a modest district official to vice president under President Pedro Castillo in July 2021.
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She subsequently assumed the presidency in December 2022 following Castillo’s impeachment after he attempted to dissolve congress and rule by decree.
At least 49 people were killed in the protests that followed.
Critics accuse Boluarte’s government of taking an increasingly authoritarian bent as it staves off demands for early elections and works with members of congress on laws that threaten to undermine the independence of Peru’s judicial system.
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