Guatemala attorney general fires top anti-corruption prosecutor

Juan Francisco Sandoval dismissed as head of a special anti-corruption agency against impunity.

Guatemala’s attorney general has removed an internationally known corruption prosecutor from his post as head of the anti-corruption unit, prompting criticism that the move was a setback to the rule of law. Juan Francisco Sandoval was dismissed on Friday as head of the Special Prosecutor’s Office Against Impunity (FECI), which had been hit with legal challenges seeking to declare the agency unconstitutional. The unit was originally created to tackle investigations spearheaded by the United Nations-backed International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), which was removed from the country in 2019.