Peru’s Former President Receives 15-Year Prison Sentence

Peru’s former president Ollanta Humala and his wife have been sentenced to 15 years in prison for money laundering connected to millions in illegal campaign funds from Brazil’s Odebrecht company and Hugo Chávez’s Venezuelan government.

Key Takeaways

Former Peruvian President Ollanta Humala and his wife Nadine Heredia received 15-year prison sentences for laundering nearly $3 million in illegal campaign contributions.
The funds came from Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht and the Venezuelan government under Hugo Chávez to finance Humala’s 2006 and 2011 presidential campaigns.
Humala becomes the third former Peruvian president imprisoned for corruption in the past two decades, joining a growing list of Latin American leaders tainted by the Odebrecht scandal.
Nadine Heredia has sought asylum at the Brazilian embassy in Lima, while Humala was immediately taken into custody after the sentencing.

Another Latin American Leader Falls to Corruption

A Peruvian court delivered a decisive blow against political corruption on Tuesday by sentencing former President Ollanta Humala and his wife, Nadine Heredia, to 15 years imprisonment each. The couple was found guilty of laundering nearly $3 million in illegal funds received from Brazilian construction conglomerate Odebrecht and the Venezuelan government under Hugo Chávez. These funds were used to finance Humala’s presidential campaigns in 2006 and 2011, with the latter being successful.

The court ordered immediate imprisonment for both defendants. Humala was escorted from the courtroom by police officers while his wife was notably absent from the proceedings. In a dramatic development, Heredia has sought asylum at the Brazilian embassy in Lima under the 1954 Convention on Diplomatic Asylum. Her brother, Ilán Heredia, was also convicted in the case and received a 12-year sentence for his role in the money laundering operation.

Peruvian ex-President Ollanta Humala jailed 15 yrs for money laundering tied to Odebrecht funds in 2011 campaign. Wife Nadine Heredia, also sentenced, granted asylum in Brazil. Peru to provide safe passage. Humala to serve at special prison for former leaders. pic.twitter.com/C6r2R6SkUC

— Faytuks Network (@FaytuksNetwork) April 16, 2025

Widespread Political Corruption in Peru

Humala, a former army officer who rose to prominence after a military rebellion in 2000, joins a growing list of Peruvian presidents entangled in corruption scandals. He is the third former Peruvian president to be imprisoned for corruption in the last two decades, alongside Alejandro Toledo and Alberto Fujimori. The case represents part of a broader pattern of political corruption that has decimated public trust in Peru’s political institutions.

Most Peruvian presidents since 2001 have faced legal troubles connected to the Odebrecht scandal. Former President Alejandro Toledo was sentenced to over 20 years in prison, while former President Alan García took his own life in 2019 when police arrived at his home to arrest him. Keiko Fujimori, daughter of former President Alberto Fujimori and Humala’s opponent in the 2011 election, is also under investigation for allegedly receiving illegal campaign funds from Odebrecht.

The Odebrecht Bribery Machine

The investigation into Humala began in 2015 following Odebrecht’s admission in 2016 that it had paid bribes to secure government contracts throughout Latin America. The Brazilian construction giant admitted to paying over $29 million in bribes to Peruvian politicians between 2005 and 2016, part of a massive corruption operation that extended across numerous countries. The trial of Humala and Heredia began in 2022 after they had previously spent nine months in pretrial detention from 2017 to 2018.

In addition to the campaign finance violations, the judges at the National Superior Court found that Humala and Heredia had “concealed real estate purchases” with the illegal funds. Eight others were also convicted alongside the former president and his wife. Humala’s legal team has announced plans to appeal what they describe as an “excessive” sentence, while the couple claims they are victims of political persecution rather than corruption.