The President of Peru, Pedro Castillo, testified this Friday (17) to the Peruvian Public Prosecutor’s Office in the investigation of the “Puente Tarata 3” consortium, which investigates his participation in an alleged corruption scheme in public works involving government officials and family members of the president.
The leftist president left the government palace on foot in the morning and walked about eight blocks, while greeting pedestrians, accompanied by aides and about thirty police officers, including plainclothes and uniformed agents.
“To clarify the allegations and speculations against me, today I will go to the Prosecutor’s Office in an act of transparency with the population and collaboration with the justice,” he wrote minutes earlier on Twitter. He is investigated on suspicion of influence peddling and criminal organization.
The prosecution is investigating whether a former Minister of Transport, six parliamentarians, a former Secretary General of the Presidency and two of Castillo’s nephews were part of an alleged criminal network, led by the President, to award public works contracts.
Castillo entered the District Attorney’s building shortly afterward, without speaking to the press. Outside, a dozen demonstrators were protesting the president. The deposition lasted more than an hour and a half.
The president was summoned by prosecutor Samuel Rojas. Another four investigated close to him are on the run after a preventive detention order was issued. Police are offering rewards between $4,000 and $13,300 for information leading to the suspects’ arrest.
Peruvian legislation prevents a president from being tried while he is in power, but not from continuing investigations against him, the indictment maintains. Castillo’s term runs until 2026.
The president is due to testify on the same case next Tuesday (21), convened the opposition-dominated Congressional Oversight and Comptroller Committee.
The investigation spawned another fair share for the president’s team this week. On Wednesday (15), the video of a Brazilian stripper stole the attention of participants in a virtual hearing about the case that was broadcast live. Images of Brazilian Ricardo Milos dancing in a loincloth bearing the US flag were shared by the account of Benji Espinosa, a member of Castillo’s defense.
Judge Juan Soria caught the lawyer’s attention. “There is some interference coming from the lawyer’s computer showing very suggestive images,” he said.
To Reuters, Espinosa denied being responsible for sharing the video and claimed to have been the victim of a cyber crime. “The video appeared abruptly, giving the impression that it came from my account, which I deny,” she said. The audience was suspended for a few minutes after viewing the content.
The lawyer said he had filed a court complaint alleging that the episode shows how vulnerable the Peruvian judicial system is to attacks. The hearing took place remotely due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and President Castillo did not participate in the session.
The event was broadcast live on TV Justiça, the channel of the Judiciary Branch of Peru, and retransmitted by Canal N. The hearing was convened at the request of the president’s defense, which is trying to interrupt the process.
