Three Former Presidents Are 'Prison Mates'... Peru Bears the Stigma of Dishonor

Former President Toledo Extradited to US and Detained
Accused of Hundreds of Billions in Bribery... Barbadillo Prison
"Presidents Fujimori and Castillo Currently Incarcerated"

An ignominious event occurred in Peru where three former presidents are serving time in the same prison simultaneously.

On the 23rd (local time), foreign media including AFP reported that the Peruvian prosecution received Alejandro Toledo (77), former president of Peru, from the United States as a criminal extraditee on charges of bribery amounting to hundreds of billions of won, and detained him in prison.

Alejandro Toledo, former president of Peru, who is accused of bribery and other charges, is seen getting off the plane on the 23rd (local time) after being extradited from the United States to Peru.
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

According to reports, former President Toledo arrived in Peru on a commercial flight accompanied by two U.S. security agents, underwent the criminal extradition procedure, received a medical examination at the investigation authorities' building, and immediately moved to court to respond to hearings for detention. Afterwards, former President Toledo was ordered preventive detention for 18 months and was incarcerated at Barbadillo Prison located on the outskirts of the capital, Lima.

It is reported that Barbadillo Prison houses former President Alberto Fujimori (in office 1990?2000), who is serving time for embezzlement and election law violations, and former President Pedro Castillo (in office 2021?2022), who is under investigation for charges including coup d'?tat and abuse of power.

Alejandro Toledo, former President of Peru.
Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

Former President Toledo served as Peru's president from 2001 to 2006. At the time of his inauguration in July 2001, he recorded a high approval rating of 60%.

However, he is currently accused of receiving a $20 million bribe (approximately 26.6 billion won) from Odebrecht to secure the bid for the construction project of the South American continental transcontinental highway connecting Acre State in northern Brazil and southern Peru, and of money laundering. Odebrecht is a major Brazilian construction company that caused controversy several years ago by triggering the largest bribery scandal in Latin American history.

Former President Toledo, who fled abroad to evade the Peruvian judicial authorities' net, was arrested in the United States in July 2019. Subsequently, he continuously refused the Peruvian government's extradition request by appealing to the U.S. courts, but after a court ruling ordering "extradite him to Peru," he was ultimately dishonorably repatriated.

Earlier, the Peruvian daily newspaper El Comercio reported that if former President Toledo is convicted in his home country, he could face up to 20 years in prison.

Meanwhile, the extradition of former President Toledo, which began in 2018, was realized after six years. Among former Peruvian presidents, he is the second after Fujimori, who was extradited from Chile.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.