 Bolivian President Luis Arce on Thursday denied being behind an attempted coup against himself and said the general who apparently led it acted on his own, lashing out at accusations that he asked for the mutiny in a plan to boost his popularity. In his first appearance before the press since the failed coup, Arce called suggestions of a self-coup lies and added, I am not a politician who is going to win popularity through the blood of the people. Hours later, he announced a total of 17 people had been arrested for their alleged involvement in the attempted government takeover, including the army chief.