MEXICO CITY — A former president of Peru was sentenced to a significant prison term on September 3 for using shell companies to launder money, which he received as bribes from a foreign company.

Peru's Ninth Criminal Court in Lima sentenced Alejandro Toledo, 79, to 160 months (13 years and 4 months) for the concealment of criminal proceeds, as announced by the Peruvian Judiciary on social media.

The Toledo Case and the Odebrecht Scandal 

Toledo, who served as president from 2001 to 2006, is a key figure in the Odebrecht scandal, a massive corruption case that has rocked Latin America. The scandal involved bribes paid by the Brazilian construction company Odebrecht to officials across the region in exchange for public works contracts.

Prosecutors accused Toledo of using three shell companies, including one named Ecoteva, to move bribe money. He allegedly funneled approximately $5.1 million (equivalent to around 7.1 billion KRW) through these companies before using the funds for real estate purchases and mortgage payments. The court determined that these companies, with their legal address in Costa Rica, were nothing more than a front for international money laundering. The court also ordered the dissolution of these entities.

Concurrent Sentences and a Notorious Prison 

This new sentence will run concurrently with a previous prison term. Toledo is already serving a 20-year and 6-month sentence in the Barbadillo prison for a separate case related to the Odebrecht bribes. This means he will only need to serve the longer of the two sentences.

The Barbadillo prison has become a notorious symbol of Peru's fight against corruption. Toledo is currently joined by three other former presidents who are also incarcerated there for various offenses:

Ollanta Humala (served 2011–2016)
Martín Vizcarra (served 2018–2020)
Pedro Castillo (served 2021–2022)

The presence of four former heads of state in the same prison underscores the pervasive issue of political corruption in Peru's recent history.