Ex-President Of Peru Sentenced To Over 20 Years In Prison For Corruption

A court in Peru has sentenced the country's former President Alejandro Toledo to over 20 years in jail for corruption. The 78-year-old, who served in office from 2001 to 2006, was convicted of taking $35 million in bribes from a Brazilian construction firm for a construction contract. Toledo was arrested five years ago in the United States and was extradited to Peru in 2022.

Authorities accused the former president of accepting bribes from a firm named Odebrecht in exchange for allowing the construction of a highway in the South American country. During the trial, Toledo denied charges of money laundering and collusion levelled against him by prosecutors. According to a BBC report, the firm admitted paying millions of dollars in bribes to officials across Latin America and the US to get government contracts.

The judge reportedly said that Toledo’s victims were Peruvians who “trusted” him as their president. Apart from Alejandro Toledo, authorities also accused three other former presidents of receiving payments from the construction company. Toledo was extradited to Peru after a court of appeals denied a challenge to his extradition and he surrendered to authorities. The former leader has since remained under preventive detention.