Sawt Falasteen - Peru president says Rolexes at heart of graft probe belonged to friend

Boluarte's remarks, broadcast on state television, came after she spent five-and-a-half hours giving a statement to public prosecutors in the affair dubbed "Rolexgate."

"I must admit that it was a mistake to accept as a loan those watches from my friend Wilfredo Oscorima," Boluarte said, referring to the governor of the Ayacucho region and a political ally.

"I have already returned" the Rolex watches, the 61-year-old president added.

The media investigation which prompted the probe against her revealed she had worn various Rolex watches to official events as vice president and minister of development, before taking over in 2022 from predecessor Pedro Castillo.

Police raided Boluarte's home and presidential office on March 30 in search of the alleged collection, which was said to include at least three high-value Rolex watches, according to photographs published by local media.

Prosecutors had earlier said she would be required to present the undeclared luxury timepieces and explain their origin as part of the probe into illegal enrichment.

The public prosector's office was also seeking an explanation for Boluarte's possession of a "$56,000 Cartier bracelet" and other jewelry valued at more than $500,000. Bank deposits of about $250,000 from her time as a cabinet minister in 2021 and 2022 were also being investigated.

"Everything that has been said is false," Boluarte declared, denying owning the luxury jewelry.

At one point during her news conference, Boluarte held up her arm to display the watch on her wrist, pointing out it was a Jacques du Manoir timepiece that she had bought in Switzerland, and not an alleged "fourth Rolex."

The government hoped Boluarte's statement to investigators would put an end to a scandal that provoked two motions to impeach her, both defeated by the right-wing majority in Congress on Thursday.

- 'Jail awaits' -

Small groups of protesters gathered outside the prosecutor's office as Boluarte gave her statement, including a group of mainly women who expressed their support for the president.

A separate group shouted: "Dina, jail awaits you!"

Boluarte is the sixth president in the last quarter century to face corruption charges in Peru.

She is also the sixth president the country has had in just eight years.

"I entered the presidential palace with clean hands and I will leave with clean hands, as I promised the Peruvian people," Boluarte said last week.

The president is already facing approval ratings of around 10 percent, and has had a torrid time in office since taking over from Castillo, who tried to dissolve Congress and rule by decree, leading to his arrest and impeachment.

In 2023, prosecutors opened an investigation in which she stands accused of "genocide, homicide and serious injuries," for the death of more than 50 protesters during a crackdown on demonstrations demanding she resign and call fresh elections.

Z.AlNajjar--SF-PST