Lima, April 16, 2025 — Former Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for accepting illegal campaign funds from Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht, marking another high-profile conviction in Peru’s ongoing anti-corruption efforts.
Humala’s wife, Nadine Heredia, received the same 15-year sentence. However, hours after the verdict, Peru’s foreign ministry confirmed she had entered the Brazilian embassy in Lima and been granted diplomatic asylum on medical grounds. She is expected to travel to Brazil with her youngest child under safe passage.
Ollanta Humala, who led the country from 2011 to 2016, was found guilty of receiving illicit contributions during his presidential campaigns in both 2006 and 2011. The funds were reportedly channeled through the Nationalist Party and originated from Odebrecht, now operating as Novonor, which has admitted to extensive bribery operations across Latin America.
Prosecutors had originally sought 20 years in prison for Humala and 26 years for Heredia. The couple has denied all charges and announced plans to appeal the verdict, with a full ruling expected on April 29.
Their legal saga began shortly after Humala left office, with the pair first detained in 2017 during a preliminary investigation. Though released in 2018, the case continued to unfold until this week’s sentencing.
Heredia’s legal team emphasized that she had previously been denied permission to seek cancer treatment abroad, prompting Brazil to step in with humanitarian asylum. Brazilian authorities have not yet released further details on her asylum terms.
Humala will serve his sentence at a police facility that also houses former presidents Alejandro Toledo and Pedro Castillo. Alberto Fujimori, another ex-leader, was released in 2023.
The ruling is part of the wider “Lava Jato” (Car Wash) probe, which has implicated several top Peruvian politicians. In 2019, ex-president Alan García died by suicide as police attempted to arrest him over related bribery accusations. Testimonies from Odebrecht executives reveal that nearly every major Peruvian presidential campaign over the past 30 years received illicit financial backing.
This conviction reinforces the depth of the corruption scandal that continues to shake Peru’s political foundations.
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