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Moral hazard
Lt. Col. Guillermo Moral Centurión was shot dead Thursday afternoon by two gunmen on a motorbike while at the wheel of his truck in the heart of Paraguay’s capital, Asunción. Moral’s murder in broad daylight in front of the law faculty of UNA — Paraguay’s top public university, where he was also studying — in an apparent sicariato (contract killing) has shocked residents of the capital.
The assassination of Moral, a 44-year-old father of two, has also stoked fears about impunity. In 2023, Moral — then a major posted to the Viñas Cué military prison — was hailed as a hero after he denounced an attempt to bribe him $1,400 to deliver a phone to alleged narcotrafficker Miguel Ángel Insfrán, aka “Tío Rico”. His superior officer was jailed last month as a result. Moral’s brother said he had reported being followed in recent weeks, adding: “If I talk too much, I’m next.”
Vice-president Pedro Alliana — taking the reins while President Santiago Peña travelled to Brazil — condemned the killing as a “direct attack by organised crime against the Paraguayan state.” The authorities raided the prison hospital ward where Insfrán — whose lawyer denies any connection to the homicide — is residing. Two suspects ages 18 and 16, thought to be members of the Clan Rotela gang, are wanted by police.
THE PARAGUAY POST ANALYSIS:
Despite a reputation for criminality, Paraguay’s overall homicide rate is low for Latin America: just 6.2 murders per 100,000 inhabitants were recorded in 2023, compared to 21.2 in Brazil. But targeted hits ordered by mafia bosses have shot up in recent years, and spread from border areas like Canindeyú and Amambay to the capital.
The renewed attention on Insfrán — accused of running an international cocaine ring in league with Uruguayan kingpin Sebastián Marset — is uncomfortable for the ruling Colorado Party. Tío Rico and his brother, José Insfrán, had close ties with impeached senator Erico Galeano and ex-congressman Juan Carlos Ozorio: both also facing trial as part of A Ultranza, a sweeping money-laundering and narcotrafficking probe.
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POLITICS
Opposition accuses Peña of corruption
On Thursday, eight opposition legislators formally accused President Peña of illicit enrichment, influence peddling and money laundering, citing growth in his official net worth of 1,600% in six years, reaching $3.2 million in 2023. The allegation follows an ABC Color investigation describing envelopes stuffed with cash in the presidential residence (The Weekly Post, 29.09.25).
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