It is quite possible that the matter would have ended with Antequera's succession to Governor of Paraguay until a new royal governor was appointed for the province. However, friends of Reyes reached Lima, where they pleaded their case to the Viceregal court. With the support of the influential Jesuits, they convinced Viceroy of Peru Diego Morcillo that Reyes was the victim of a plot by jealous Paraguayans and an ambitious Antequera. Viceroy Morcillo conducted a stormy correspondence with the Audencia of Charcas, accusing them of having overstepped their authority and that giving the chief judge of the case against Reyes the power to succeed him as governor was illegal. On three separate occasions from 1721-1723 he demanded the reinstatement of Reyes as governor. The Audencia responded that this was a judicial matter, and the Viceroy was the one overstepping his bounds. The Jesuits held a ceremony proclaiming the escaped Reyes as the legitimate governor. Reyes also went to Corrientes, where the authorities recognized his claim and began impounding carts & goods of traders who refused to support Reyes' claim. Trade between Paraguay and the rest of the Spanish Empire was interrupted. The situation degenerated further after a group of men loyal to Antequera came to Corrientes and kidnapped Reyes in the night, dragging him back to Asunción - a highly illegal act in the eyes of the citizens of Corrientes and the Viceroy, as the government of Paraguay had no lawful power in Corrientes. Enraged, the Viceroy finally opted for military force, ordering Governor Zavala of Buenos Aires to prepare an army to march on Asunción to depose Antequera.