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C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 000600 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/22/2019 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM PHUM PINR ENVR ASEC BL PTER
SUBJECT: GOB BRIEFS DIPLOMATIC CORPS ON "TERRORIST CELL" 
 
REF: A. LA PAZ 593 
     ¶B. LA PAZ 290 
     ¶C. 08 LA PAZ 2483 
     ¶D. 08 LA PAZ 2374 
 
Classified By: Charge Kris Urs for reasons 1.4 (b, d) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  Bolivian Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera 
and other senior administration members, during an address to 
the diplomatic corps on April 21, underscored the seriousness 
of what they labeled a series of three terrorist attacks and 
the presence of a terrorist cell with at least ten members. 
On April 16, Bolivian police forces killed three alleged 
terrorists in a downtown Santa Cruz hotel (reftel A).  In an 
interview released posthumously, the group's leader advocated 
the secession of Santa Cruz department, Bolivia's largest and 
most prosperous state, but explicitly denied having any plans 
to attack La Paz or overthrow the government.  Nevertheless, 
Garcia Linera repeatedly pledged to carry the investigation 
to its "final conclusions," raising fears of possible arrests 
of members of the Santa Cruz-based political opposition. 
President Evo Morales rejected requests by the Hungarian, 
Irish, and Croatian governments to investigate the three 
deaths, saying they had no right to demand explanations. 
Charge reassured Garcia Linera that there was no USG 
involvement as per President Obama's recent public statement; 
the Vice President responded that the GOB knows that the USG 
is with them.  Striking his chest for emphasis, Garcia Linera 
said "President Obama's words brought us here."  End summary. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Presentation to Diplomatic Corps 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶2. (C) Following the deaths of three and arrest of two 
alleged terrorists April 16 in Santa Cruz by the Bolivian 
SWAT team (reftel A), the Bolivian government has released 
preliminary results of its ongoing investigation into what it 
claims is a cell of at least ten terrorists.  The government 
said the group is also responsible for recent attacks on the 
homes of Deputy Autonomy Minister Saul Avalos and Cardinal 
Julio Terrazas.  In a packed meeting of the diplomatic corps 
April 21 in the Presidential Palace's Hall of Mirrors, Vice 
President Alvaro Garcia Linera, Government Minister Alfredo 
Rada, and Presidency Minister Juan Ramon Quintana justified 
the killing of the three alleged terrorists and reviewed what 
they emphasized was just "ten percent" of the information 
they had captured regarding the group's aims and activities. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
VP: "Terrorists" and "Assassins" 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶3. (C) Garcia Linera noted that after the explosion at 
Cardinal Terraza's house, the government intensified its 
focus on the suspected terrorist cell, leading ultimately to 
the April 16 shootout at the Santa Cruz hotel.  He said 
during the raid the five men attacked the police with gunfire 
and explosives.  The vice president emphasized that the men 
were neither tourists nor random fanatics, but rather part of 
a structured terrorist cell that was well-funded and trained 
to achieve their ultimate goal of secession for Santa Cruz 
and the assassination of Morales, Garcia Linera, and "three 
ministers." 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Investigation Not a Witch Hunt, Really 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶4. (C) Garcia Linera told the group of diplomats that La Paz 
Prosecutor Marcelo Sosa was the case's main investigator and 
said the government would abide by the results of the 
investigation, including any established links to Santa Cruz 
businessmen and/or political opposition members.  Garcia 
Linera said the effort would be impartial and would not be a 
witch hunt.  However, he pledged to take the results of the 
investigation to their "final conclusion."  (Note: Garcia 
Linera used similarly firm language after the September 2008 
violence in Pando (reftel B-D), after which the government 
illegally jailed Prefect Leopoldo Fernandez and violently 
detained over forty more, many of them prominent political 
opposition members.  End note.) 
 
- - - - - - - - - - 
Rada: Cell Structure 
- - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶5. (C) Government Minister Rada discussed the alleged 
structure of the cell, including the five members found in 
Bolivia.  He said Hungarian-Bolivian Eduardo Rozsa Flores was 
the leader of the group, that he had obtained the rank of 
colonel in the Croatian army, and was believed to be 
responsible for the murder of a journalist in Croatia.  Rada 
described Irishman Michael Martin Dwyer as second-in-command, 
saying he had military and security experience.  Rada said 
Romanian-born Hungarian Arpad Magyarosi was used as a 
sharpshooter/sniper.  Rada referred to the two captured men, 
Mario Tadic Astorga (a Croatian-Bolivian) and Elod Toaso (a 
Hungarian), as a member of the Croat army responsible for the 
Terrazas attack and as the main computer specialist, 
respectively.  Rada said that in addition to the five 
captured or killed, information seized by the police 
indicated there were others involved. 
 
¶6. (C) Rada reported that after the gun battle, the police 
found pistols, dynamite, C4 explosives, and ammunition 
corresponding to 5.56mm weapons.  Noting that the weapons 
cache found at the Cotas stand in the ExpoCruz fairgrounds 
did not include any weapons of this type, he said there were 
likely other weapons caches in the ExpoCruz area.  (Note: The 
Embassy participates in the ExpoCruz fair only through its 
association with the American Chamber of Commerce, and does 
not have its own stand or storage area.  End note.)  Rada 
said the materiel seized corresponded to the explosive 
devices left at both Avalos' and Cardinal Terrazas' homes, 
which included dynamite, C4, nails, and other metal pieces. 
He then indicated the government had information showing the 
group's next attacks included the president, vice president, 
and three ministers (whom Rada left unnamed). 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
VP: We Want Your Help 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶7. (C) Garcia Linera spoke again, saying there was much more 
information to be reviewed.  He said the group had maps of 
Bolivian military bases they apparently planned to attack, 
that they were recruiting other members, and that they had 
"specialized arms" even the Bolivian government did not 
possess.  The vice president said they found many photos, 
some including Bolivians from Santa Cruz and Beni, and that 
they were in the process of identifying these people.  He 
insisted the photos were not "montages" or 
otherwise-assembled works by the government, and that the 
photos also indicated there had been plans for an attack 
around the January 25 constitutional referendum which did not 
come to pass.  He specifically referred to a photo of Rozsa 
with Cruceno autonomy activist Mauricio Iturri and averred 
that he was trained by Rozsa.  Garcia Linera ended with a 
simple plea to the assembled group, saying "we want your 
help." 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Quintana: Troop Movements 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶8. (C) Presidency Minister Quintana then took the floor 
briefly to note that, in his opinion, the attacks occurred 
because the political opposition created a context in which 
they were possible and because the government's authority in 
the area was not strong enough.  He identified six border 
provinces within Santa Cruz department where the government 
would deploy troops to strengthen control. 
 
- - - - - - - - 
Questions Remain 
- - - - - - - - 
 
¶9. (C) Despite the GOB's coordinated presentation that 
maintained the group's intentions to assassinate the 
president, in an interview with Hungarian television 
(released posthumously and characterized as his "final 
testimony"), Rozsa explicitly stated he did not seek to 
attack the central government in La Paz or to assassinate 
Morales or other administration officials.  In a conversation 
with Charge after the administration's presentation, the 
German DCM remarked that it seemed there was "not enough" to 
justify the government's claims of a well-funded terrorist 
network, given that the supposed terrorists were easily 
captured and did not appear to be well trained. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
Charge Press Statement 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶10. (U) After the presentation, Charge met briefly with the 
press, saying that "if asked" the USG would be pleased to 
study potential assistance we could give to the 
investigation.  The Cubans offered assistance as well. 
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Morales Gets Mad at Europe 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶11. (U) In a press conference later on April 21, President 
Morales bristled at requests by the governments of Hungary, 
Ireland, and Croatia for more information about the deaths of 
their citizens.  Morales said the three countries "have no 
authority to ask me for an explanation...  I am tempted to 
sue them, that is what I want to do, but I am not a lawyer. 
How can they defend people who came here to attack the 
president?  That is very grave.  I could think that they (the 
governments) were the ones who sent them in to attack me, to 
attack democracy."  Irish Foreign Minister Michael Martin 
said Morales was being unreasonable and mentioned evidence 
suggesting the three men died in an "ambush" and not in a 
prolonged gun battle.  Similarly, Hungarian Foreign Minister 
Peter Balazs said he doubted Rozsa and the others were 
plotting assassinations.  "We can assume they were the 
victims of domestic Bolivian politics," he said. 
 
- - - - 
Comment 
- - - - 
 
¶12. (C)  While the existence of a paramilitary group 
dedicated to the defense and potential secession of Santa 
Cruz seems clear, the other goals attributed to the group by 
the Bolivian government are more difficult to verify. 
Observers fear the government may leverage the group's 
presence to go after the political opposition in Santa Cruz, 
similar to their round-up of Pando political opposition. 
Just as in Pando, the government has claimed sole prosecution 
authority falls in the hands of police and investigators from 
La Paz.  Post notes that ex-Pando Prefect (and Morales rival) 
Fernandez has now been in prison for seven months under 
dubious legal pretext and without a trial.  We are also wary, 
given the president's penchant for accusing the Embassy of 
supporting the opposition (and despite the vice president's 
chest-pounding affirmation to Charge), of a potential GOB 
accusation that the Embassy or the USG generally supported 
Rozsa's "terrorist" attacks.  End comment. 
URS