A Guatemalan tribunal convicted newspaper founder and editor José Rubén Zamora on Wednesday of money laundering, concluding a trial press freedom groups decried as a political persecution aimed at silencing a critical voice.
The three-judge panel sentenced Zamora to six years in prison for money laundering that affected the national economy and stability of the financial system. The tribunal cleared Zamora of additional charges of blackmail and influence peddling.
Guatemala President Alejandro Giammattei, and specifically his justice system, have been criticized internationally for backsliding on democratic principles and weaponizing the country’s prosecutors and courts to pursue perceived enemies.
.png?w=600)
