Constitutional Court of Peru rejects habeas corpus of former President Pedro Castillo

Lima.- The Constitutional Court (TC) of Peru declared unfounded the habeas corpus presented by former President Pedro Castillo (2021-2022), sentenced to 11 years in prison for conspiracy to rebel, considering that his rights to health and imprisonment in the Barbadillo prison have not been violated, according to a resolution released this Friday in Lima. The Constitutional Court’s ruling declared the claim inadmissible and unfounded, as the violation of the rights to health and not to be subjected to treatment lacking reasonableness and proportionality regarding the form and conditions in which Castillo serves his imprisonment had not been proven. Castillo’s defense filed the habeas corpus petition with the intention of obtaining his temporary release to undergo surgery for a heart condition in a specialized hospital and that afterwards he can be confined to his home under the medical care of his family. He also filed a claim for compensation in the event of death or worsening of his health. The TC indicated that the request was inadmissible due to insufficient evidence regarding the medical conclusion that would have determined that surgical intervention and the alleged refusal of the National Penitentiary Institute (INPE) to authorize the operation.

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Castillo, 56 years old, has been held in Barbadillo prison, east of Lima, since December 2022, following the failed coup attempt he announced on the 7th of that month in a message to the nation. The trial against the former president and several former members of his cabinet concluded on November 27 with a sentence of 11 years and five months for the crime of conspiracy to rebel against Castillo and his then-prime minister Betssy Chávez, who requested asylum in Mexico and is in the diplomatic residence of that country in Lima, awaiting the safe-conduct that will allow her to leave Peru. In Barbadillo, former presidents Alejandro Toledo (2001-2006), Ollanta Humala (2011-2016), and Martín Vizcarra (2018-2020) are also held for corruption offenses.