Nicaraguan editor-in-chief detained in latest move to target criticism of president

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An editor-in-chief of the Nicaraguan daily La Prensa was jailed on Saturday after a police raid on the newspaper, making him the last of dozens of critics of President Daniel Ortega to be arrested.

Juan Lorenzo Holmann was taken to a Managua prison, allegedly to sign documents, his cousin and fellow journalist Carlos Fernando Chamorro said on Twitter.

Hours later, police confirmed Holmann’s arrest, saying in a statement he was under investigation for customs fraud and money laundering.

They said the case was turned over to the authorities “for prosecution and to determine criminal liability.”

Three months before the presidential elections, Holmann’s arrest brings the number of opponents to Ortega in detention to 33.

Nicaraguan La Prensa editor, Juan Lorenzo Holmann, was arrested after a raid on the newspaper; he is the last critic of President Daniel Ortega to be arrested Photo: AFP / INTI OCON

Among them, the vice-president of La Prensa, Cristiana Chamorro, whose family owns the newspaper. She is one of seven presidential candidates currently in detention.

Ortega, a 75-year-old former guerrilla, first took office in 2007 as part of the left-wing Sandinista National Liberation Front. He is now seeking a fourth term.

His government faces sanctions from the United States and the European Union, which accuse it of human rights violations and repression of opposition figures.

Ortega, in turn, accused the opposition of trying to overthrow him with the support of the United States.

Holmann’s arrest came a day after he announced the suspension of the newspaper’s print edition, accusing customs officials of refusing to distribute imported newsprint, a charge the government denies.

La Prensa continues to offer a digital edition. It is the only Nicaraguan newspaper with national circulation.

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