- Writing
- BBC News World
image source, Getty Images
The Ecuadorian Prosecutor’s Office requested this Friday the preventive detention for former President Lenín Moreno, after accusing him of the crime of bribery for allegedly participating in a corruption scheme that involves the collection of US$76 million in bribes.
Prosecutor Diana Salazar warned that the amount is equivalent to 4% of the value of the contract to build the Coca Codo Sinclair dam, which was assigned to the Chinese construction company Synohodro during the time that Moreno was vice president in the government of Rafael Correa.
Among the 37 people charged by the Prosecutor’s Office are also Moreno’s wife, daughter, mother-in-law, two brothers and two sisters-in-law, who would have received US$660,000 in kickbacks.
The prosecutor requested preventive detention for the 37 involved, with the purpose of guaranteeing that everyone is present throughout the criminal process.
Moreno and 13 other defendants must comply with it under house arrest for being over 65 years of age.
The prosecutor also requested the immobilization of bank accounts at the national level, and international criminal assistance to Switzerland, Spain, Panama, China, Paraguay, the United States and Belize to retain the accounts that the defendants have in those countries.
The plot
The investigation, which began in March 2019, “reveals a structure of corruption around the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric project, with an interstate and transnational scope and that would have developed his illegal actions between 2009 and 2018Salazar said in a message posted on social media this week.
“The amount of the alleged bribery would be about US$76 million, which would correspond to approximately 4% of the contracted value of the work, which initially was almost US$1,979 million,” Salazar explained.
The final price of the work exceeded US$2.2 billion, the prosecutor said, adding that the alleged bribes would have been delivered by Sinohydro and channeled through third parties.
China has not responded to a request for cooperation in the case, Salazar said.
Lenín Moreno’s defense rejects the accusations.
Moreno denies the accusations
The former president lives in Paraguay, where he is a commissioner for the Organization of American States for the disabled.
Moreno denies the accusations and says that he is surprised by the actions of the Prosecutor’s Office at a time when Ecuador is experiencing “a complex political situation.”
“I do not have nor did I have any responsibility in the contracting of the ‘most emblematic’ work of the Citizen Revolution,” Moreno said, referring to the political group of former President Rafael Correa, in a letter published Wednesday on his Twitter account.
“I will defend myself with absolute adherence to the truth,” he added.
Moreno, who was Ecuador’s president between 2017 and 2021, and vice president between 2007 and 2013, has said that the accusations against him were orchestrated by former president Rafael Correa, his former mentor and later detractor.
Remember that you can receive notifications from BBC Mundo. Download the new version of our app and activate them so you don’t miss out on our best content.