Prosecutors in Peru are seeking a 35-year prison sentence for former President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski on corruption charges related to the Odebrecht scandal. The 84-year-old Kuczynski is accused of forming a criminal organization that allegedly received $12 million from Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht for secret consultancies and money laundering.
The company, which has since changed its name to Novonor, admitted to paying hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes throughout Latin America to secure huge public works contracts. Kuczynski allegedly used his financial advisory companies to collude with Odebrecht.
Kuczynski’s lawyer, Julio Mindolo, said his client is confident the situation will be resolved, adding that no one can link him to any acts of corruption. Kuczynski has been under investigation for five years and spent three years under house arrest before being granted conditional release in April 2022.
Former President Alejandro Toledo, who preceded Kuczynski and was president from 2001-06, is also being held in pre-trial detention following his extradition from the US last month and faces corruption charges related to the Odebrecht scandal.
Before Kuczynski became president in 2016, he had been a minister in Toledo’s government. In 2018, he became the first Latin American president to resign over alleged connections to the Odebrecht scandal. Two other former Peru presidents, Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) and Alan Garcia (2006-2011), have also been accused of corruption related to the Odebrecht case.
Humala’s trial began in February, while Garcia committed suicide in April 2019 as police arrived at his house to arrest him. The Odebrecht scandal has caused political upheaval and criminal investigations throughout Latin America since it was uncovered in 2014.
Prosecutors in Peru are seeking a 35-year prison sentence for former President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski on charges of corruption related to the Odebrecht scandal. Kuczynski is accused of forming a criminal organization that allegedly received $12 million from Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht for secret consultancies and money laundering.
Kuczynski allegedly used his financial advisory companies to collude with Odebrecht. The Odebrecht company admitted to paying hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes throughout Latin America to secure huge public works contracts.
Kuczynski’s lawyer, Julio Mindolo, stated that his client is confident that the situation will be resolved and that no one can link him to any acts of corruption. Kuczynski has been under investigation for five years and spent three years under house arrest before being granted conditional release in April 2022.
Former President Alejandro Toledo, who was president from 2001-06, is also being held in pre-trial detention following his extradition from the US last month and faces corruption charges related to the Odebrecht scandal.
Two other former Peru presidents, Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) and Alan Garcia (2006-2011), have also been accused of corruption related to the Odebrecht case. Humala’s trial began in February, while Garcia committed suicide in April 2019 as police arrived at his house to arrest him. The Odebrecht scandal has caused political upheaval and criminal investigations throughout Latin America since it was uncovered in 2014.
SOURCE: Ref – Lima (AFP)
Images: Google Images
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