Ex-President Moreno Receives Five-Year Bribery Sentence in Ecuador

A court in Ecuador on Friday handed down a five-year prison term to former President Lenin Moreno. The conviction stems from his involvement in a bribery scheme, where he was found guilty of receiving illicit payments from a Chinese firm responsible for constructing the nation's largest hydroelectric facility. According to a statement released by the prosecution on X, Moreno, who presided over Ecuador from 2017 to 2021, was one of twenty individuals implicated in the corruption saga linked to the Coca Codo Sinclair dam project, undertaken by China's Sinohydro company. The alleged corrupt practices occurred between 2007 and 2013, a period when Moreno served as vice-president under then-socialist President Rafael Correa.

Moreno initially rose to power as Correa's successor, enjoying his predecessor's political endorsement. However, their relationship soured as Moreno's administration adopted a more conservative stance and fostered closer ties with the United States. Following the court's verdict, Moreno has declared his intention to appeal the decision. His wife and several other family members were also handed prison sentences of almost three years for their complicity in the case. Prosecutors had originally pushed for a longer sentence for Moreno, specifically six and a half years behind bars.

The 73-year-old former head of state, who is a paraplegic and previously served as the United Nations special envoy for disability affairs, vehemently denied the charges after Friday's ruling. He asserted that he never received “a single cent” from Sinohydro. Moreno attributed the entire legal ordeal to “the Correa regime,” alleging that his erstwhile political patron and now adversary, Rafael Correa – himself a convicted corrupt official residing in Belgium – had “promised to take revenge on me.” Prosecutors contend that Sinohydro disbursed a total of $76 million in bribes, which represents approximately four percent of the hydroelectric project's overall cost. Two former managers of the power plant were among the others found guilty alongside Moreno.