Ecuador convicts ex-President Moreno in hydro plant corruption case

The public prosecutor's office reported that an Ecuadorean court convicted former president Lenin 'Moreno on Friday of bribery in connection with the construction of Andean nation's largest hydroelectric plant.

The Attorney General's Office launched the investigation on March 20, 2023. It linked Moreno and his family, local and Chinese business associates, including Ecuador's ex-Chinese ambassador in Quito, with an alleged corrupt network related to the construction of Coca Codo Sinclair, which started operating in 2016, but has been plagued by technical problems ever since.

Judge Manuel Cabrera delivered the ruling, saying that "Lenin?Moreno?s conduct is consistent" with the charges made by the prosecution.

Both his wife and daughter were found guilty. Moreno, 19 other defendants and the prosecutor had all been given sentences of more than six years. According to the Attorney General's Office, Sinohydro paid out approximately $76.1 millions in bribes through fraudulent consulting contracts between 2009 and 2018.

Investigators claimed that the money was routed through offshore bank accounts and shell corporations in?tax-havens, to Moreno and his family. The prosecution claimed that Moreno's family and close associates received more than $1,000,000?while Moreno served as vice-president from 2007 to 2013

Moreno has consistently denied the allegations. He maintains that he was not involved in the signing or oversight of the contracts for the project.

The prosecutor should be advised that they are looking in the wrong place. You're looking in the wrong place if you don't look at the people who signed the contracts and those who have a habit of requesting kickbacks," Moreno said at the hearing.

Moreno returned from Paraguay, where he served as president between 2017 and 2021, to Ecuador to stand trial. (Reporting and editing by Alexandra Valencia)

(source: Reuters)