In a trial that attracted international attention, the former president Alejandro Toledo He was sentenced to 20 years and six months in prison this past Monday for his involvement in a fraud case involving a Brazilian construction company. Oidebrecht. According to the charge presented by the anti-corruption prosecutor Jose Domingo Perezthe former governor asked for $35 million in bribes to ensure that Odebrecht received the bid for the highway project Interoceanicwhich connects Brazil and Peru.
The case focuses on the accusation that Toledo received bribes in exchange for Odebrecht’s favor in the awarding of the road project, which was completed in 2013 and covers a distance of 2,600 kilometers. The money, according to Public Ministrysent through Joseph Maimanthe late Israeli businessman, who was linked to the president at the time.
During the trial, the former president admitted that Maiman paid the last installments of the mortgage on his house in Lima, although he did not specify the origin of the funds. The Prosecutor’s Office presented evidence that Jorge Barataformer Odebrecht executive, confirmed the payment of bribes to ensure the award of the project.
“We can confirm, in order to close this trial, that it is Alejandro Toledo He asked for 35 million dollars in exchange for Odebrecht winning the Interoceanic project and the agreement agreements,” said the representative of the Prosecutor’s Office while asking for a sentence of 20 years and 6 months in prison for Toledo, as well as three years of disqualification and the payment. 242 days of fine.
Toledo, the second president convicted of corruption in Peruvian history and the first in Latin America for the situation Lava Jatowas extradited from the US in April 2023 and is being held in Barbadillo prison. During his closing argument, he asked the judges to allow him to “cure or die at home” from the cancer and heart conditions he suffers from. “I am innocent, I never made any arrangement with Mr. (Jorge) Barata, much less with Maiman (the alleged front man Josef),” he said.
Stating that he was under house arrest in the United States before he was extradited to face the oral trial in Peru, he described Maiman as an “international gangster” and noted that, with the help of hired specialists, to find the money. way” that arose from “the compatibility of Odebrecht with the Maiman organization.”
“Maiman, from Odebrecht, received 43 million dollars, as well as a million euros,” he said who is in a Swiss bank managed by a relative of his, according to Toledo. He also recalled that the construction of the highway started from a meeting he had with the Brazilian leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in his first government.
“The need came about how can we boost our economy. The question is there (Brazil) regarding access to the Pacific Ocean”, he said through the territory of Peru. “We got the economy into recession” and “tried to encourage private investment,” he said.
At another point in the exhibition, Domingo Perez He said that Toledo asked for the million dollar bribe from Odebrecht. Visibly upset, the former ruler interrupted him from his seat: “Who asked me?” The judges asked Toledo to remain calm and warned him that he would be ejected from the courtroom if he did not do so.
One day before hearing the sentence, the United States granted an extradition extension to Toledo for the Ecoteva case, which involves the transfer of funds from Odebrecht to a company in Costa Rica, whose assets were found in the national territory. This process also involves former first lady Eliane Karp, who is currently in Israel.
The recent conviction marks a decisive moment in the judicial history of the country, where Ollant Humala (2011-2016) and Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016-2018) are also among his defendants in the case, as well as Alan García (2006-2011) to take into account. , who took his own life in April 2019.
At the end of the hearing, lawyer, Roberto Suthe magistrate attacked Ines Rojas Contreras and they announced that they will appeal to upper room “with more choice”, so that able to correct the conviction and exonerate their sponsor.
“The defense is going to file an appeal. We hope that the second case can be reviewed and analyzed. We believe it is very fair to establish criminal liability and civil compensation in the proposed terms,” said the lawyer.
“It was not proven in the trial that Alejandro Toledo intervened. The sentence is based on the evidence of Barata and Maiman, but only what suits them. Because before the judges said that Barata was crazy, it was wrong, but when Barata accused Toledo, it is right, that is the sentence, “he said.
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