On Monday yesterday, a Peruvian judge ruled that money laundering investigation against former President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski should be reopened.

Earlier this month, prosecutors filed charges of money laundering and conspiracy and conspiracy against Mr. Kuchinsky, seeking jail time for an economist and former banker who took office in early 2016 but resigned in March 2018 on against the backdrop of his trial in parliament as he was accused of taking a bribe from the Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht in exchange for government contracts.

The judge’s decision followed an appeal by Mr. Kuchinsky’s lawyers, who argued that the way their client was investigated violated his right to a defense.

Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, also known as PPK, from the initials of his name, denies that he was bribed by Odebrecht.

Peru’s political scene is engulfed in an investigation into a scandal involving a Brazilian construction company that has been bribing officials in Latin American states for decades to secure government projects. In addition to Mr. Kuczynski, former President Alan Garcia, who committed suicide to avoid arrest by the police, and former President Alejandro Toledo, who was extradited to the country USA – where he lived permanently after serving his term – last month.

Mister. Toledo currently held in the same detention center as former President Alberto Fujimori, who is serving a 25-year sentence for human rights violations during the Peruvian civil war and corruption cases, and former President Pedro Castillowho faces charges of “sedition” following his arrest in December for attempting to dissolve Congress, a case that sparked a major political crisis and unrest.

The Odebrecht scandal also affected former President Fujimori’s daughter Keiko Fujimori, whom Mr. Castillo won in the 2021 elections.

According to APE-MPE and Reuters