Miss Nicaragua pageant director announces retirement after accusations of ‘conspiracy’

The director of the Miss Nicaragua pageant, Karen Celebertti, announced her retirement from the organization Monday, nine days after police accused her of “conspiracy” and other crimes along with her husband and son, who have been detained.

“The time has come for my retirement,” Celebertti wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “I know that there will always be more opportunities for us.”

It was Celebertti’s first public statement after the scandal that followed the coronation of Miss Nicaragua Sheynnis Palacios as Miss Universe on Nov. 18 in El Salvador.

Celebertti said that she worked for 23 years “with zeal and effort” until Nicaragua won the world beauty crown this year, which she described “as an achievement for everyone” and “for every Nicaraguan, without political distinction.”

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Palacios’ surprise victory in the contest sparked demonstrations of joy in the streets and praise from President Daniel Ortega until reports linked her to anti-government protests in 2018. After that, Ortega’s government lashed out at opposition social media sites — many run from exile — that celebrated Palacios’ win as a victory for the opposition.

According to local media reports, immigration authorities prevented Celebertti and her daughter Luciana from entering the country Nov. 22, after they attended Palacios’ coronation and accompanied her on a short trip to Mexico.

Later it was announced that the police had raided Celebertti’s home in the southwest of Managua and arrested her husband, Martín Argüello, and their son, Bernardo.

Without confirming the arrest, the authorities accused three members of the family Dec. 2 of treason, conspiracy and “organized crime.”

A statement by the National Police claimed that Celebertti “participated actively, on the internet and in the streets, in the terrorist actions of a failed coup,” an apparent reference to the 2018 anti-government protests.