Penchant for Rolex watches lands Peruvian president in hot water

LIMA: Peru’s prosecutor’s office on Sunday ordered President Dina Boluarte to present any Rolex watches in her possession, after a raid on her home and office as part of a corruption probe.

Boluarte, 61, is being investigated for illegal enrichment and failing to declare several luxury watches which she has been spotted wearing since coming to power in 2022, following her predecessor’s arrest.

“The president of the republic has been formally summoned to exhibit the Rolex watches,” when she gives her sworn statement on April 5, the prosecutor’s office said.

The statement from the prosecutor’s office said that officers had not found the luxury watches during a dawn raid on Saturday, in which agents were shown breaking down the door of Boluarte’s home in dramatic television footage.

However, “other elements of interest for the investigation were obtained.” Local media indicated that documents were found showing when one of the watches was obtained.

Boluarte’s lawyer Mateo Castaneda told journalists on Saturday that police had found some watches during their operation.

“They did not take them away. They were noted and photographed. There were around 10, and among them were some nice ones but I cannot say if they were Rolex,” Castaneda told radio station RPP.

In an address to the nation, Boluarte slammed the raids as “arbitrary, disproportionate and abusive.” The raid came after prosecutors refused Boluarte’s request for more time to respond to a subpoena demanding she furnish proof of purchase for her watches.

Prosecutors also want to know if she has reported the Rolex watches on her income statements.

Published in Dawn, April 1st, 2024