Ecuador: ex-President Correa sentenced to eight years in prison for corruption

Text by: RFI Follow

The former Ecuadorian socialist president Rafael Correa, who lives in Belgium, was sentenced on Tuesday April 7 to eight years in prison at first instance by the justice of his country in a corruption case during his government (2007-2017), announced the prosecution.

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Rafael Correa, who has always claimed to be the victim of political persecution with the help of magistrates, quickly challenged the court decision which sentenced him to eight years in prison for corruption. “ I know the process and what the judges say is LIE. They have absolutely NOTHING proven. Completely false, unproven testimony, " he tweeted.

A chamber of the National Court of Justice (CNJ) issued the same sentence for 17 people, including ex-vice-president Jorge Glas, already detained for having received bribes in the Odebrecht scandal, and former employees of Rafael Correa.

Justice has condemned the former president and some of his former collaborators for their responsibility in a system of bribes paid by companies in exchange for contracts, including the construction giant Odebrecht, although the prosecution has not not investigated the Brazilian group as such.

The Court also ordered " the loss of (political) participation rights for 25 years for all convicted persons ". " This is what they were looking for : to obtain by manipulating justice what they have never achieved at the polls. I'm fine. It is my comrades who worry me. We will surely win internationally because all of this is just a masquerade, ”said the former president.

(With AFP)

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• Ecuador
• Rafael Correa