Overview

• Judge Wilson Verastegui issued an October 9 order greenlighting an oral trial for Vladimir Cerrón, Guillermo Bermejo, Guido Bellido and others over alleged ties to Sendero Luminoso in the VRAEM.
• The case file and the formal accusation were remitted to the National Criminal Collegiate Court, which will set the trial date.
• Prosecutors seek 25 years and permanent disqualification for Cerrón, 20 years and permanent disqualification for Bermejo and Bellido, and life imprisonment for alleged leader Víctor Quispe Palomino, along with civil reparations requested by the state.
• Cerrón remains a fugitive since October 2023 and is also under a separate 24‑month preventive detention order in a money‑laundering investigation.
• Four days into his term, President José Jerí has not sworn a cabinet and says he is taking a pause, after multiple prospects for prime minister declined, as legal experts warn his actions lack validity without ministerial countersignature and reporting highlights past votes for laws criticized as weakening investigative tools.