BREAKING: Peru’s Former President Ollanta Humala, Wife Sentenced to 15 Years for Money Laundering
Former Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after being found guilty of money laundering linked to illegal campaign financing.
His wife and political ally, Nadine Heredia, received the same sentence in a landmark ruling that marks the culmination of a years-long investigation into corruption tied to Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht.
The court in Lima ruled that Humala, 62, accepted illicit funds from Odebrecht to support his presidential campaigns in 2006 and 2011. Heredia, who co-founded the Nationalist Party with Humala, was also convicted of laundering the illicit funds.
Though prosecutors had sought longer sentences—20 years for Humala and 26 and a half for Heredia—the court handed down 15-year terms after a trial that lasted more than three years. While Humala appeared in court for the verdict, Heredia attended via video link.
Despite maintaining their innocence throughout the trial, the couple’s political careers have now been overshadowed by the scandal. Peru’s foreign ministry confirmed that Heredia has been granted asylum in Brazil and will be permitted safe passage there with her son.
Humala, a former army officer who gained national attention in 2000 for leading a failed military uprising against then-President Alberto Fujimori, first ran for president in 2006 with the backing of Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez. Prosecutors alleged that he accepted illegal campaign funds from Chávez during that race, though he lost to Alan García.
In his successful 2011 campaign, Humala distanced himself from Chávez, aligning instead with the moderate policies of Brazil’s then-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. He defeated right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori, daughter of the former president he once opposed militarily.
However, his presidency was quickly marred by social unrest and political division. Early conflicts and loss of congressional support undermined his administration, and his legal troubles began shortly after his term ended in 2016.
That same year, Odebrecht admitted to paying hundreds of millions in bribes across Latin America to secure public contracts. Investigators accused Humala and Heredia of receiving millions from the company. In 2017, a judge ordered their pre-trial detention, although they were later released as the investigation continue
