As he drove to a radio interview in the central city of Cochabamba on Sunday, former Bolivian President Evo Morales reported that his driver was wounded when gunmen opened fire on his vehicle.
“The car in which I arrived has 14 bullet holes,” said Morales, adding: “This was planned. The idea was to kill Evo.”
A video purporting to show the bullet-riddled pickup truck Morales had been in was posted by Kawsachun Coca, the radio station that conducted the interview.
There were three bullet holes in the windscreen, and the driver’s head was covered in blood.
The incident was attributed by Morales to the current president, Luis Arce, a former ally and cabinet minister with whom he has a falling out.
“Lucho has destroyed Bolivia and now he wants to eliminate our process by killing Evo,” Morales added, referring to his own bid to win the presidency again.
Morales, a 65-year-old former coca farmer, was president from 2006 to 2019. Before he attempted to circumvent the constitution in order to run for a fourth term, he was quite well-liked in the Andean nation.
After an election marred by accusations of fraud, he lost the military’s support and was forced to resign. He then fled to Mexico.In 2020, Morales went back to Bolivia in search of political rebirth.
Although Morales is legally prohibited from standing for president again, he and Arce are both competing for the nomination of the ruling MAS party in the August 2025 elections.
Morales’ alleged sexual involvement with a 15-year-old member of his political youth guard in 2015 is the subject of an investigation into the crimes of rape, people trafficking, and human smuggling.
Supporters of Morales have protested by blocking major roads throughout the country for two weeks.
Arce overhauled the military leadership Saturday as part of what he called a drive to restore order.
Anyelo Cespedes, a lawmaker close to Morales, said that after Sunday’s shooting he has seen video of a helicopter leaving Cochabamba airport with six people aboard.
“We do not know for sure if they are military or police, but all they really want to do is assassinate Evo Morales,” he told AFP.
“Yesterday they overhaul the military leadership and today they try to kill Evo Morales,” he added.
