Moreno requests to suspend his sentence!
Quito, Sep 7 sep (EFE).-
An Ecuadorian court will review on Monday former President Lenín Moreno’s (2017-2021) request to suspend his five-year prison sentence for accepting bribes from the Chinese state-owned company Sinohydro.
The bribes were in exchange for securing financing from Sinohydro for the construction of Coca Codo Sinclair, the country’s largest hydroelectric plant.
The hearing is taking place at the National Court of Justice (CNJ) in Quito, where Moreno’s request for a conditional suspension of his sentence is being reviewed.
This mechanism would allow Moreno to avoid prison if he complies with conditions and obligations established by the court.
His wife, Rocío González; his daughter, Irina Moreno; and his brothers, Edwin and Guillermo, who were each sentenced to two years and six months in prison, filed the same request. Seven others convicted in the same case also filed requests.
The convicted individuals filed the requests on Monday, Aug. 31, and it was determined on Wednesday, Sep. 2, that the hearing would take place on Monday, Sep. 7.
The former president and his family members invoked a repealed article of Ecuador’s Penal Code that was in effect at the time of the events.
The aforementioned article allowed for the suspension of prison sentences of up to five years if certain requirements were met.
On Aug. 28, Moreno was convicted alongside 19 others after a panel of judges from the National Court of Justice (CNJ) found him guilty of accepting bribes to secure financing for the construction of the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric plant, built by Sinohydro.
The judges accepted the prosecution’s argument that Sinohydro paid approximately 76 million dollars in bribes through a network of companies and distributed them among various individuals, including members of the former president’s family.
The events under investigation date back to 2010, when Moreno served as vice president during Rafael Correa’s administration (2007–2017).
According to the judges, Moreno used his position to intervene in a “matter outside his purview” to favor the Chinese company. In exchange, his family received benefits. Moreno has denied these allegations.
In a Sunday social media post, Moreno claimed that the allegations are “completely false” and that he did not facilitate the financing of the hydroelectric project. The project has been called into question due to thousands of cracks reported in the years following its construction.EFE
