Peruvian anti-corruption police entered the set of the television program “Beto a Saber” on Thursday after the show reported the discovery of four boxes containing electoral materials in the Surquillo district.
Host Beto Ortiz said he contacted police, the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE), and prosecutors to take custody of the material after two individuals approached the program’s staff on Wednesday evening, stating they had found the boxes on a public road.
According to Ortiz, only one of the four boxes was open and contained sealed envelopes with marked ballots from 300 voters who had participated in the recent elections. The boxes were reportedly linked to four polling stations in the Surco district.
Ortiz stated that the head of the decentralized electoral office for Surco had indicated that taxis were hired to transport the electoral materials, but that ONPE personnel may have left four boxes behind during the transfer, which was reportedly under the supervision of a police officer and a representative from the National Elections Board (JNE).
Claudia Sandoval, head of the ODPE for Lima Oeste 3–Santiago de Surco, appeared during the broadcast and said the boxes did not reach their intended destination due to “involuntary errors” in the delivery process.
Agents from the Directorate against Corruption (Dircocor) of the Peruvian National Police remained at the television station’s facilities following their entry into the studio.
The incident has raised concerns about the handling and custody of electoral materials in Peru, particularly as officials investigate how the boxes ended up abandoned in a public area.
