Narayan AmmachchiOdebrecht’s corruption saga put dozens of Latin American politicians behind bars, and former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo appears to be next.
Peruvian police officers are expected to land soon in San Francisco (California) to arrest Toledo, who’s been living in the US for over a decade while being accused of bribery and other crimes back in Peru.
Peruvian authorities claim that the US State Department gave its consent to extradite Toledo. However, US media reports stated that a San Francisco court will issue its ruling on the extradition on the second week of March.
Toledo fiercely opposes extradition, stating that the bribery charges are “politically motivated”. If found guilty, Toledo could face up to 20 years in prison.
But the noose is tightening around his neck. The key witness, Israeli-Peruvian businessman Josef Maiman, has testified against him. Even Odebrecht admitted to bribery payments.
Toledo joins a long list of former Peruvian presidents accused or already convicted of being involved in corrupt practices. Former president Ollanta Humala (2011-2016) is also under investigation for alleged money laundering. Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016-2018), Martin Vizcarra (2018-2020) and Pedro Castillo (2021-2022) are being investigated too.
Former president Alan Garcia (2006-2011), another fallen politician linked to the Odebrecht scandal, killed himself in 2019 before being arrested.
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