On Wednesday, the U.S. State Department allowed former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo (2001-2006) to be extradited to his home country to face corruption charges.
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The Peruvian justice accuses Toldeo of receiving a US$20 million bribe from the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht in exchange for helping it to obtain the contract of the Interoceanic highway, which currently connects Peru with Brazil. For this charge, Toledo may face 20 years in prison.
After signing a collaboration agreement with the Peruvian Prosecutor’s Office in March 2019, Peruvian-Israeli businessman Josef Maiman, who was a personal friend of Toledo, confirmed that Odebrecht deposited US$35 million in the former president accounts.
Meanwhile, the former Odebrecht company representative in Peru, Jorge Barata, confirmed that Toledo received bribes in exchange for the Interoceanic highway construction contract. Toledo, however, denied all charges, alleging to be a victim of political persecution.
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The 76-year-old politician was arrested in 2019 in California following a formal request from Peru for extradition. He served seven months in a U.S. prison but was sent to house arrest in March 2020 after being granted bail.
"There is no set deadline for the arrival of Toledo to Peru, but it will not be as much as months," said Alfredo Rebaza, the Peruvian Prosecutor’s Office Extradition Director.
Other Peruvian former presidents have been also accused of accepting bribes from the Odebretch company.
Alan Garcia (1985-1990, 2006-2011) committed suicide in 2019 when he was going to be arrested by the Lima police for this charge, while Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) and Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016-2018) are currently under investigation.
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By Khamisi
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