Former Ecuadorian president jailed for corruption charges

Lenín Moreno maintained that he had not accepted any funds from a Chinese corporation that was awarded a contract to construct a hydroelectric facility in the South American country.

The 73-year-old individual will serve his sentence under house arrest, a provision made due to his age and a disability, and he has already indicated his intention to appeal the court's decision in the capital city, Quito, which found him and nineteen other individuals culpable of corruption.

Moreno, who held the presidential office from 2017 to 2021, is the third ex-leader of Ecuador to face a corruption conviction.

Prosecutors alleged that Sinohydro, a company owned by the Chinese state, disbursed a total of $76.1 million (£56.2 million) through a network of shell companies to various individuals involved in the agreement to ensure the construction of the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric dam.

Among those who received custodial sentences were Moreno's spouse, his daughter, and his brother, along with former managers of the plant, representatives from Sinohydro, and a Chinese ambassador to Ecuador.

While prosecutors claimed that Moreno himself gained very little from the alleged scheme, they stated that members of his family received tens of thousands of dollars.

Individuals found guilty of bribery will be required to reimburse three times the amount they received, and Moreno was barred from holding any public office.

He denied any involvement in the alleged bribery plot, instead pointing the finger at another former president, Rafael Correa, under whom Moreno had served as vice-president and who was given an eight-year prison sentence in a separate bribery case during 2020.

Moreno asserted that Correa had authorized the Coca Codo Sinclair project and that he had initiated an inquiry into construction problems upon assuming the presidency.

In 2021, the Ecuadorian government began legal proceedings against Sinohydro due to the appearance of cracks in the dam and other technical malfunctions. The government reached a $400 million settlement with the firm's owner earlier this year.

The BBC has attempted to contact Sinohydro and the Chinese embassy in Ecuador for their comments on the matter.