The ex-president Alexander Toledoinvestigated for receiving alleged bribes of more than 35 million dollars from the Brazilian construction company odebrechtleft his apartment, in the town of Menlo Parkin the San Francisco Bay (California) and then went to surrender to the United States justice.
Accompanied by his wife, the former first lady Eliane Karpand with a couple of other people, the ex-president organized the luggage in his trunk where, apparently, there were clothes and other utensils that he will use in the jail of the Northern District Court of California: there it will remain until a team of prosecutors arrives Peruvians, along with other officials, to be extradited to the country.
Noticing the presence of the press, Alejandro Toledo and his partner just stared at the camera. The former head of state said something ineligible, even though he pointed a finger at the cameraman. And before getting into his vehicle, he made another gesture. Thus, these are the last images of the former head of state released, before turning himself in to US justice.
The also economist handed over his passport, by order of Judge Thomas S. Hixson, assured his lawyer Roberto Su Rivadeneyra.
According to the accusation, presented by the Prosecutor’s Office in 2020, the former head of state asked odebrecht a bribe of 35 million dollars, in exchange for the award of sections 2 and 3 of the South Interoceanic highway, which connects Peru with Brazil, for which it is requested that he be sentenced to 20 years in prison for the crime of money laundering assets.
“I don’t think the extradition process will last more than four days, it means that between Tuesday and Wednesday he must be in Peru,” Su Rivadeneyra said in an interview with Epicenter TV.
It is still unknown in which prison Alejandro Toledo will be on Peruvian soil. There he must serve a preventive prison of 18 months while the process for the Interoceanic case is followed. Everything indicates that he will accompany Alberto Fujimori and Pedro Castillo in the Barbadillo Penitentiary Establishment, which is located inside the facilities of the Directorate of Special Operations (DIROES) and operates autonomously through the National Penitentiary Institute (INPE).
The former director of odebrecht In Peru, Jorge Barata, told the Prosecutor’s Office in 2017 that the Brazilian company paid more than 31 million dollars in bribes to Alexander Toledo.
However, the German businessman Josef Maiman, who became the key piece of the Public Ministry by becoming an effective collaborator, said that it was not 31, but 35 million dollars that the former president received in offshore accounts.
Barata’s statement helped the Prosecutor’s Office link him with the investigation to the case file Ecotevawhich involves Alexander Toledo and Eliane Karp for the alleged crime of money laundering aggravated by an offshore account, in the name of his mother-in-law Eva Fernenbug.
The Public Ministry is investigating the acquisition of two properties in Lima in the name of his mother-in-law, in addition to the purchase of mortgages. The Peruvian authorities have the hypothesis that these purchases were made with the company’s money. odebrecht.
The case of the Brazilian company, the largest corruption scandal in Latin America, not only affects Alexander Toledobut also other former presidents such as Alan García (1985-1990 and 2006-2011), Ollanta Humala (2011-2016), Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (2016-2018) and the three-time presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori ( 1990-2000).
Alexander Toledo He offered an exclusive interview to the EFE news agency, one day before turning himself in to the United States, to be later extradited to Peru to serve preventive detention and answer for the Obebrecht case.
“I ask the Peruvian justice not to kill me in jail, let me fight with arguments,” said the former president, who served as president between 2001 and 2006.
The politician assured that he will turn himself in to justice because he is respectful of the judge’s decision (Thomas S. Hixson), although he does not share it.
Alexander Toledo He argued that his health was not good: “It is very bad. I take 14 pills a day, I have hypertension and I suffer from the remnants of cancer (…). Just respect that, they haven’t proven anything and they already want to put me in jail.”
Finally, the economist expressed that he will fight until the end so that he is declared innocent. Therefore, he would not run away now because “it would be admitting my guilt.”
