São Tomé and Príncipe’s Judicial Police have detained a Chilean national wanted by Interpol who served as special adviser to prime minister Américo Ramos until last month, a judicial source told Lusa today.
Said detention occurred on Tuesday and the man was handed over to the public prosecutor’s office today in response to an international arrest warrant issued by Interpol.
According to parliamentary sources and a document consulted by Lusa, Ignacio Purcell Mena, 54, had also been appointed adviser to former National Assembly president Celmira Sacramento in August last year, but was dismissed after the foreign ministry rejected a request to issue him a diplomatic passport.
The man was introduced to São Tomé authorities by current National Assembly president Abnildo D’Oliveira, who at the time was serving as vice-president of parliament. When contacted by Lusa, D’Oliveira neither confirmed nor denied the information, but said he would comment on the matter “at the appropriate time.” The prime minister’s office did not respond to Lusa’s requests for clarification.
This is the second case of the detention of foreign nationals serving as advisers to São Tomé sovereign bodies. On February 22, also at Interpol’s request, the São Tomé judicial police detained a Swedish national “for the commission of crimes of serious bodily harm, possession and use of prohibited weapons, serious sexual assault involving the administration, against the expressed will of the victims and through the use of force, of incapacitating drugs.”
Carlsson Stig Karl-Magnus, born January 8, 1964, held a São Tomé diplomatic passport as diplomatic adviser to president Carlos Vila Nova, who stated after the arrest that the Swede “had a clean criminal record” at the time of his appointment to work on health and maritime security projects in the Gulf of Guinea.
Read more about this topic: Former advisor to the São Toméan President, wanted by Interpol, is in custody
In a similar situation in April 2022, the São Tomé president dismissed a special adviser of German nationality following reports of his alleged involvement in influence trafficking. President Carlos Vila Nova justified the decision at the time by citing the need to “safeguard the external image” of São Tomé and Príncipe in light of reports indicating the dismissed official was “under investigation.” German national Stephan Welk had been appointed on January 27 of that year to provide “specialised technical information” on international relations, to help the president “in coordination with the government, find viable mechanisms to seek better solutions for the country’s socioeconomic development,” according to the presidential appointment decree.
