Former Salvadoran president Mauricio Funes, who had been living in Nicaragua since 2016 to avoid facing charges in his home country, passed away late on Tuesday at the age of 65. Nicaraguan authorities confirmed his death in a statement on the government's official website, citing a "serious chronic illness" as the cause without offering further details.
Funes, who served as El Salvador's president from 2009 to 2014, had fled to Nicaragua after facing corruption allegations that led to five arrest warrants in El Salvador almost a decade ago. In 2019, President Daniel Ortega's government, who shared political and ideological beliefs with Funes, granted him Nicaraguan citizenship, providing him with protection from extradition.