Peruvian ex-president sentenced to more than 20 years in bribery case

Alejandro Toledo is the latest Latin American leader to be implicated in the Odebrecht corruption scandal.

Peruvian ex-President Alejandro Toledo has been sentenced to more than 20 years in prison, the latest Latin American leader to be jailed in connection with the Odebrecht construction firm corruption scandal.

Toledo was convicted of taking $35m in bribes from the Brazilian construction firm in exchange for a freeway construction contract, and was sentenced to 20 years and six months in prison on Monday.

“I want to go to a private clinic. I ask you please to let me get better or die at home,” Toledo said at a hearing last week, saying that he was dealing with health issues stemming from cancer.

The 78-year-old former leader of the Andean nation, who served in office from 2001 to 2006, received one of the harshest sentences yet handed out in connection to Odebrecht’s campaign of bribery in exchange for political favours across the continent.

During a yearlong trial, Toledo consistently denied charges of money laundering and collusion levelled against him by prosecutors. He was first arrested in the United States in 2019 after Peru requested his extradition, and was sent back there in 2022 after years of legal debate over his potential extradition.

Odebrecht-related scandals have led to the jailing of officials in Peru, Panama, and Ecuador. Probes of corruption by the construction giant have also occurred in countries such as Guatemala and Mexico. The company has since changed its name to Novonor.

In 2019, Peru jailed 14 top lawyers while they were investigated for allegations of providing the firm with preferential treatment in public works contracts.

Toledo will serve his sentence in a prison on the outskirts of the Peruvian capital of Lima, specially constructed to house former presidents.

He may soon have additional company.

Two more ex-presidents, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and Ollanta Humala, are under investigation in similar cases related to Odebrecht.

Former President Pedro Castillo is also being detained as he faces charges of “rebellion” after a failed attempt to dissolve Congress in 2022.