The Justice of Ecuador has found former president Lenín Moreno (2017-2021) guilty of a crime of bribery, having established that he received bribes in exchange for favoring the Chinese state company Sinohydro in the construction of the largest hydroelectric plant in the country.
The National Court of Justice (CNJ) concludes that Moreno, taking advantage of his position as vice president —a role he held between 2007 and 2013 during Rafael Correa's government— attempted to intervene in an "area outside his jurisdiction" in order to guarantee the financing of the project, in exchange for unjustified economic benefits directed to his wife, Judith González, his daughter Irina, and his brothers.
According to the Prosecutor's Office, the Chinese construction company Sinohydro would have disbursed more than 76 million dollars (65.6 million euros) in bribes to secure the awarding of the Coca Codo Sinclair plant. This sum would include more than one million dollars (860,000 euros) that Moreno and several of his relatives allegedly received.
As a consequence, the Public Ministry has requested a sentence that includes disqualification from holding public office, as well as a penalty of six years and six months in prison for the former president, his wife, and his daughter, among a total of 20 people prosecuted in this case.
After the hearing, Moreno has blamed former president Rafael Correa and former vice president Jorge Glas for the awarding of the hydroelectric plant to the Chinese company, in statements made to the media upon leaving the hearing.
"The one who signed the contract is Rafael Correa Delgado. He made a government-to-government contract (...) At what moment did I intervene? In the construction? No. The construction was done, by order of Rafael Correa, by Jorge Glas and paradoxically the moment they finished the construction (...) I have not received a single cent from Sinohydro," he has assured.
The trial began in May, just a few days after the former head of state returned to Ecuador to appear before the CNJ, after being formally accused of bribery for his alleged participation in a corruption and bribery scheme linked to the largest hydroelectric plant in the country.
According to the Prosecutor's Office, this corrupt network would have operated between 2009 and 2018. The illicit payments would not have been made directly, but through "fictitious" consultancies, shell companies, and bank transfers related to Moreno's closest circle.