The US accuses the government of El Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele of secretly negotiating a truce with the leaders of the country s feared MS-13 and Barrio 18 street gangs.
A plunge in the country's murder rate is one of the most highly touted successes in office, according to the explosive accusation on Wednesday.
Bukele's office did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Bukele denied similar accusations when they were reported in August 2020 by the local news site El Faro.
Two officials from Bukele's government were designated by the US Treasury for financial sanctions.
The two officials accused of negotiating directly with the gang leaders were Osiris Luna Meza, the chief of the Salvadoran penal system and vice-minister of justice and public security, and Carlos Am lcar Marroqu n Chica, chairman of the Social Fabric Reconstruction Unit.
In 2020, Bukele s administration provided financial incentives to Salvadoran gangs MS-13 and 18th Street Gang Barrio 18 to ensure that incidents of gang violence and the number of confirmed homicides remained low, the treasury statement said. Over the course of these negotiations with Luna and Marroqun, the gang leadership also agreed to provide political support to the Nuevas Ideas political party in the upcoming elections. In a landslide, Bukele's New Ideas party won legislative elections earlier this year, giving it control of El Salvador's Congress.
The announcement comes as a number of former officials from previous administrations are being prosecuted for negotiating a similar pact with the gangs.
Former attorney general Raul Melara said he would investigate the El Faro report at the time, but when Bukele took over Congress, the new lawmakers removed Melara and replaced him with someone friendly with Bukele.
An investigation into the government's gang leaders revealed the secret negotiations, according to the US Treasury. Luna and Marroquin allegedly led, facilitated and organized a number of secret meetings involving gang leaders, in which known gang members were allowed to enter prison facilities and meet with senior gang leaders. In addition to financial benefits for the gang members, incarcerated leaders received special treatment in prisons, including access to mobile phones and prostitutes. It said that Luna also negotiated support from MS-13 and Barrio 18 gangs for Bukele's national quarantine during the Covid 19 epidemic.
The designations Wednesday mean that any assets that Luna and Marroqun have in the United States are blocked and US citizens are prohibited from any transactions with Luna and Marroqun.
There are certain tensions between the Biden administration and the Bukele administration because of the revelations. After the new Congress removed the justices of the Supreme Court in May, the US government expressed concern about the direction of the country.
The US Agency for International Development said it would shift aid from government agencies in El Salvador to non-governmental organizations. Samantha Power, the head of the agency, went to El Salvador and gave a speech about the fragility of democracy.
In June, the new attorney general announced that the organization of American States had suspended its anti-corruption mission in El Salvador.
In May and July, the US government published lists of allegedly corrupt officials in Central America that included the name of Bukele's chief of staff, Carolina Recinos.
Bukele enjoys a high popularity. He stepped into a political vacuum left by discredited traditional parties from the left and right who had left a legacy of corruption.