2 arrested for deadly Bolivia city hall torching
Police stand guard outside a municipal building that was set on fire by protesters, in El Alto, Bolivia, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016. AP Photo
LA PAZ, Bolivia—Bolivian police arrested two people suspected of torching an opposition-run city hall in a raid that killed six people ahead of a sensitive political referendum, prosecutors said Thursday.
The two face charges including homicide and stealing state property in the raid on Wednesday in the city of El Alto, said Attorney General Ramiro Guerrero.
READ: 6 dead of asphyxiation in Bolivia protest
Two other suspects were released and a fifth, a minor, was referred to a juvenile court.
Six people died from smoke inhalation when a crowd set fire to the mayor’s offices in the city, near the capital La Paz, officials said.
The mayor Soledad Chapeton said demonstrators burst in to destroy evidence linked to corruption lawsuits against her predecessors, allies of President Evo Morales.
Opponents and allies of Morales blamed each other for the attack.
Bolivian media said it could harm his image in Sunday’s vote.
On Sunday, Bolivians will vote in a referendum on a divisive constitutional reform that could allow Morales to be re-elected until 2025.
He has won the past three presidential elections and has overseen robust economic growth, but opponents accuse him of presiding over corruption.
