Nayib Bukele

Nayib Bukele, the current President of El Salvador since 2019, has been involved in several controversies and allegations during his career, although he has denied many accusations. In December 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury accused Bukele of negotiating with gangs to lower the murder rate, a claim he has denied (Wikipedia). An investigation by El Faro revealed that Bukele’s government held negotiations with El Salvador’s three main gangs—MS-13, Barrio 18 Revolucionarios, and Barrio 18 Sureños—in 2020, with gangs demanding improved prison conditions and employment opportunities in exchange for reducing violence (El Faro). These negotiations, if true, could constitute serious misconduct, but no formal charges or convictions have been reported against Bukele related to this matter. Additionally, in February 2026, an investigation was reported to have been frozen by El Salvador’s attorney general into money laundering involving Venezuelan oil funds, which implicated Bukele receiving nearly $3.3 million from companies linked to the Alba Petróleos consortium (El País). Furthermore, reports from 2025 indicate that Bukele’s government has been accused of impeding U.S. investigations into gangs and corruption, and of suppressing dissenting voices, including the evacuation of human rights groups and the arrest of prominent lawyers (ProPublica, Al Jazeera). While these allegations highlight concerns over governance and human rights, Bukele has not been formally indicted, convicted, or prosecuted for any of these claims as of April 2026.