Political advisor Fernando Cerimedo, who used to work for President Javier Milei in Argentina and was now doing the same for Bolivian leader Rodrigo Paz, has been formally accused by the Bolivian Prosecutor’s Office of attempted femicide against his ex-girlfriend, political activist Nadia Beller, who was shot three times on Monday and remains in a stable condition in hospital.
Cerimedo was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of being behind an armed attack against Beller, a 33-year-old Bolivian lawyer, human rights activist and political analyst, who was attacked by two gunmen outside a hotel in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
At the time of his arrest, Cerimedo was about to board a plane from Bolivia to Buenos Aires.
The Argentine was placed in custody due to flight risk. On Wednesday, he refused to testify.
Beller has blamed her former partner for the attack, saying “he either sent the hitmen or knew who they were.”
Accusations
“I am sure he had something to do with this,” she told Argentine broadcaster Radio 10 on Wednesday from the hospital, where she remains under medical care.
She said that “fortunately, no vital organs were hit,” but that her right arm is “destroyed” because the bullets hit the bone.
According to Beller — a former supporter who later became a fierce critic of former President Evo Morales — she went to the hotel after someone asked her to meet with informants who were supposedly going to give her exclusive information about an alleged sexual abuse case involving Morales and a minor.
Beller said Cerimedo knew about the meeting and had told her he would send guards to protect her, but they never arrived, leading her to suspect that he had planned or knew about the attack.
“He lied to me by saying he would send guards. If I didn’t pretend I was dead, they would have come back and finished me off,” she told Bolivian TV channel DTV, adding that she lay on the ground without moving for around half an hour.
Beller also said she is four weeks pregnant with Cerimedo’s child and that she suffered gender-based violence. From the hospital, she posted alleged WhatsApp conversations with Cerimedo on Facebook, describing several instances in which she says he hit her.
Beller had recently denounced an alleged corruption scheme involving President Paz and his wife regarding fuel supply for the government.
Following the attack, she said Cerimedo and his Argentine ex-wife, Natalia Basil, were involved in the scheme and added there had also been irregular gold deals made by Paz. She said her phone, which contained evidence of this, was stolen by the hitmen.
“Rodrigo Paz, his wife, and his wife’s family are making huge deals with brokers involving all the insurance policies of all state-owned companies,” she told DTV.
Who is Fernando Cerimedo
Cerimedo, an influential political advisor, was a key member of the team that worked with Milei during his 2023 presidential campaign, leading its digital strategy. Prior to that, he had worked on the presidential campaigns of José Antonio Kast — who became Chile’s leader this year — and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
During Brazil’s 2022 presidential campaign Cerimedo was accused of spreading false information and was questioned as part of an investigation into the coup planned by Bolsonaro in 2022 to prevent Lula da Silva from taking office. However, no charges were ultimately filed against him.
According to Beller, the Argentine political advisor now holds absolute power in the administration led by Paz, who took office in November 2025 in Bolivia.
“In Bolivia, [President] Rodrigo Paz does not govern. Cerimedo governs,” she said.
Cover image: screenshot from a video by Agencia de Noticias Fides
