Guatemala ex-VP in Corruption Scandal Makes Court Appearance

Guatemala's embattled former vice president has reappeared in public for the first time in a month after stepping down as a corruption scandal reached into her office.

Roxana Baldetti on Monday attended a legal hearing on her petition for the return of properties frozen during the investigation.

The appeals court upheld a lower court's decision to embargo those assets while it is determined whether they were obtained illegally.

Baldetti was accompanied by a heavy security detail, several lawyers and her husband, Mariano Paz. Last week several properties in his name were also frozen.

Baldetti did not speak to reporters.

She resigned May 8 amid rising pressure over the customs graft scandal, in which her personal secretary was named as the alleged ringleader.