Former Ecuador President Lenín Moreno Sentenced to Five Years for Bribery

A court in Ecuador has sentenced former President Lenín Moreno to five years in prison for accepting bribes related to the construction of the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric dam. The court found that Moreno, while serving as vice president from 2007 to 2013, intervened to favor the Chinese company Sinohydro. Prosecutors stated that Sinohydro paid approximately 76 million dollars in bribes, which represents about 4 percent of the project cost. The court also convicted 19 other individuals, including a former Chinese ambassador who received a five year sentence. Moreno's wife and several relatives were sentenced to two and a half years in prison for complicity, with prosecutors alleging the family received around one million dollars in bribes.

Moreno, who is 73 years old and uses a wheelchair, has denied the charges and announced his intention to appeal. He claimed he did not receive a single cent from the company and argued that the prosecution is politically motivated. He specifically blamed the regime of his former mentor and rival, Rafael Correa, alleging that Correa promised to take revenge on him. Correa, who also lives in exile in Belgium after being convicted of corruption in a separate case, served as president before Moreno took office from 2017 to 2021.

If the conviction is upheld, Moreno may serve his sentence under house arrest due to his age and paraplegia. The court also permanently barred him from holding public office. The hydroelectric plant, which is the largest in the country and provides roughly 30 percent of national electricity, has reportedly faced technical problems since it began operations in 2016.