Bolivian authorities have arrested a former senior judge, Aldo Quezada, on suspicion of drug trafficking and criminal association as part of an intensified crackdown backed by the United States against officials involved in suspected cartel activity in Latin America. The arrest took place at Quezada's home in Santa Cruz on Wednesday, following his resignation last month as chief justice of the Santa Cruz departmental court after being named to a US visa restrictions list for alleged links to drug trafficking. This move is part of an expanding US-led campaign against corruption and drug trafficking in the region.
In September, the Trump administration imposed visa restrictions on twelve Bolivian nationals and their families, including former Attorney General Roger Mariaca, who was also arrested last month on suspicion of money laundering and drug trafficking. The United States has also cancelled the visas of officials in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru under the same policy. This escalating trend signifies a concerted effort by the US to combat corruption and drug trafficking across Latin America.
The conservative President Rodrigo Paz, who assumed office in November 2025, ending nearly 20 years of Movement for Socialism (MAS) governance, has sought closer ties to the US. Paz has signed his country up to US President Donald Trump’s “Shield of the Americas”, a new US-backed security alliance for the Americas. This alliance is expected to further strengthen the ongoing crackdown on drug cartels in Bolivia and the wider region.