Ecuador’s former president convicted of corruption

An Ecuadoran court convicted former President Lenin Moreno of accepting bribes from a Chinese company, Sinohydro, for the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric dam. Moreno, who served as president from 2017 to 2021, was among four individuals convicted in this case. The Attorney General's office claimed that Moreno was vice-president under President Rafael Correa when the alleged corruption occurred between 2007 and 2013.

Moreno served as Correa's vice-president but later distanced himself from his mentor by adopting a more right-wing stance and aligning himself with the US. The court in Quito has not yet sentenced Moreno, who remains free pending sentencing. Prosecutors requested a six-and-a-half-year prison term for Moreno. The 73-year-old paraplegic, who previously worked as the UN special envoy on disability issues, insisted that he had never received any money from Sinohydro.

He blamed the case on the Correa regime, stating that his former supporter-turned-rival promised to take revenge against him. Sinohydro allegedly paid bribes totaling $76 million, which are about four percent of the hydroelectric project's cost. Three other Ecuadoran nationals, including two former managers of the power plant, were also convicted in the case.

Around 20 people have been implicated in total, including Moreno's wife, daughter, businesspeople, and a former Chinese ambassador to Quito.