Peru’s Ex-Spy Chief Leaves Panama
- Share via
PANAMA CITY — Peru’s former intelligence chief, Vladimiro Montesinos, on Sunday left Panama in a private jet bound for Ecuador, the Panamanian president’s office said.
The reason for his departure was not immediately clear. He had arrived Sept. 24 in Panama seeking political asylum. As Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori’s spy chief and closest advisor, Montesinos was viewed by many as the most powerful man in Peru.
The release of a video in mid-September showing him apparently bribing an opposition politician unleashed a political crisis that triggered his flight to Panama and prompted Fujimori to call elections in which he will not be a candidate.
The Panamanian president’s office said Montesinos had entered the country on a tourist visa and could come and go as he pleased.
More From the Los Angeles Times
Podcasts
In our first episode, the L.A. Times columnist George Skelton sizes up the governors he’s known, what made them successful and whether the next one can measure up.
On screen, Errol Flynn played a series of daredevils, fortune hunters, and suave romantics. Off screen, he lived a life of outsize debauchery and recklessness, including a persistent interest in underage girls. In 1943, at the height of his fame, he faced trial in Los Angeles on charges of statutory rape.
How do you get more people to care about climate change — and tell riveting stories along the way? Boiling Point explored that question at a live event during this year’s New York City Climate Week at Columbia University’s Climate School.
