FORMER FUJIMORI OFFICIALS ARRESTED

LIMA, Peru -- Police have arrested two former high-level officials from
disgraced ex-president Alberto Fujimori's administration on corruption charges.

Former Attorney General Blanca Nelida Colan was arrested Wednesday on
charges of cover-up, perjury, official negligence and illicit enrichment, a
judicial spokeswoman said.

Jose Portillo, former head of Peru's election board, was arrested in
connection with the alleged forgery of 1 million signatures to help
Fujimori's coalition qualify to run in elections last year, the spokeswoman
said.

Fujimori won re-election in a vote marred by fraud allegations. He later
fled to his parents' native Japan in November as corruption scandals
involving ex-spymaster Vladimiro Montesinos ended his 10-year rule.

Colan, once considered a close ally of Montesinos, is thought to have
quashed or shelved several criminal investigations aimed at the former
intelligence chief.

In 1996, she ignored testimony from a high-profile cocaine trafficker that
he had paid Montesinos $50,000 a month in exchange for use of a jungle air
strip to ferry out shipments of raw cocaine.

Montesinos was arrested last month in Venezuela. He has reportedly
cooperated with prosecutors and judges who are investigating the reputed
web of corruption he wove while serving as Fujimori's top adviser.