A Peruvian court has sentenced former President Ollanta Humala and his wife, Nadine Heredia, to 15 years in prison for their roles in a major corruption case tied to Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht. The couple was convicted of money laundering for accepting illegal campaign contributions from both Odebrecht and the Venezuelan government to support Humala’s 2006 and 2011 presidential bids.
Following the verdict, Humala, 62, was taken into custody and moved to a police detention center. His lawyers plan to appeal the decision. Judge Nayko Coronado, who issued the ruling, also ordered Heredia’s arrest. She skipped the sentencing and sought asylum at the Brazilian embassy in Lima. After diplomatic talks, Peru’s foreign ministry confirmed she and her son were granted safe passage to Brazil.
This verdict marks a major moment in the ongoing Odebrecht scandal, which has implicated four former Peruvian presidents. Humala, who governed from 2011 to 2016, is the first to face trial. Prosecutors initially sought 20 years for Humala and 26 for Heredia, accusing them of accepting $3 million from Odebrecht in 2011 and $200,000 from then-Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez in 2006. Heredia was also found guilty of hiding real estate deals linked to the illicit funds.
Both Humala and Heredia have denied the accusations. Humala called the ruling politically driven and said he would keep fighting to prove his innocence.
The Odebrecht case is one of the biggest international bribery scandals in history. In 2016, the company admitted to paying over $788 million in bribes across multiple countries, including $29 million to Peruvian officials between 2005 and 2014 to secure public works contracts.
The scandal has rocked Peru’s political class. Former President Alan García died by suicide in 2019 as police arrived to arrest him. Alejandro Toledo, who served from 2001 to 2006, was sentenced last year to more than 20 years in prison. Investigations are still ongoing into Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, who led from 2016 to 2018.
Keiko Fujimori, Humala’s opponent in the 2011 election, also spent 16 months in pre-trial detention for alleged ties to Odebrecht—showing just how far the scandal has spread in Peruvian politics.
