Lima, Peru — In a landmark ruling that underscores Peru's ongoing battle against entrenched political corruption, a criminal court in Lima sentenced former President Martín Vizcarra to 14 years in prison on Wednesday, November 26, 2025. The 62-year-old politician was found guilty of orchestrating a bribery scheme during his tenure as governor of the southern Moquegua region from 2011 to 2014, a period predating his ascent to the national presidency. The verdict also imposes a nine-year ban on holding public office and requires Vizcarra to pay approximately 94,900 Peruvian soles (around $25,000) in civil damages.
Prosecutors presented evidence that Vizcarra accepted bribes totaling between $611,000 and $710,000 from construction firms, including Obrainsa and Contratistas Generales SAT, in exchange for awarding lucrative public works contracts. The illicit payments, often disguised as commissions or staggered contributions amounting to about 2.3 million soles, were linked to two flagship projects: the Lomas de Ilo irrigation system and the construction of a major hospital in Moquegua. Authorities argued that these bribes compromised the integrity of public procurement processes, favoring unqualified bidders and inflating costs for taxpayers in one of Peru’s poorest regions.
Vizcarra, who showed no visible reaction during the hearing, was ordered to begin serving his sentence immediately at a high-security detention center in Lima, where he will join three other former Peruvian presidents already imprisoned on corruption-related charges. His legal team announced plans to appeal the decision, contending that the prosecution relied on testimonies from executives of companies Vizcarra had previously accused of graft during his anti-corruption crusade as president. “The witnesses were turned against him in a clear act of retaliation,” his attorney stated outside the courtroom, echoing Vizcarra’s long-standing claims of political persecution.
Moments after the ruling, Vizcarra took to the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), where he has over 1.2 million followers, to denounce the verdict. “This is not justice, it is revenge,” he wrote in a series of posts. “They will not break me. They’ve removed me from office. They’ve barred me from holding public office. They’ve expelled me from my party. And now they’re throwing me in jail. Are they so afraid of Vizcarra?” In a separate statement, he framed his conviction as punishment for challenging what he called a “mafioso pact” among right-wing factions in Congress, particularly those aligned with the legacy of imprisoned ex-President Alberto Fujimori. Vizcarra expressed optimism for his political movement’s future, noting that his brother, Mario Vizcarra, is poised to run for president in the April 2026 elections under the banner of the Peru First party, where Martín serves as a key advisor despite his ouster. “He will continue the fight,” Vizcarra affirmed, predicting that Peruvian voters would deliver a resounding response at the polls.
The case represents a significant victory for Peru’s prosecutors in the sprawling “Lava Jato” (Car Wash) investigation, a multinational probe into bribery schemes orchestrated by the Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht (now Novonor), which has implicated leaders across Latin America since 2014. Although Vizcarra’s Moquegua charges are distinct from Odebrecht’s direct influence, they stem from the same era of unchecked public contracting that fueled the scandal. During the trial, evidence included wire transfers, witness testimonies from implicated executives who received leniency in exchange for cooperation, and internal documents showing preferential treatment to bribe-paying firms. Prosecutors had sought a 15-year term, but the court settled on 14 years, citing the gravity of the offenses but acknowledging Vizcarra’s lack of prior convictions.
Vizcarra’s political trajectory, once meteoric, now mirrors Peru’s turbulent recent history. A civil engineer by training, he entered public service as Moquegua’s governor, where he touted infrastructure developments as economic boosters for the copper-rich but impoverished region bordering Chile and Bolivia. His reputation as a technocrat propelled him to vice presidency in 2016 under Pedro Pablo Kuczynski. When Kuczynski resigned in March 2018 amid Odebrecht-linked scandals and allegations of vote-buying in Congress, Vizcarra assumed the presidency, vowing to root out corruption.
As president from 2018 to 2020, Vizcarra positioned himself as a reformer, dissolving a scandal-plagued Congress in 2019 via a constitutional mechanism and calling snap elections that ousted Fujimorista allies. He championed Lava Jato probes, leading to arrests of high-profile figures, including former President Alejandro Toledo. Yet, irony abounds: Vizcarra’s own impeachment in November 2020 on “moral incapacity” grounds was tied to separate bribery allegations from his vice-presidential days, which he has consistently denied as fabricated by political foes. In 2021 congressional elections, he topped the vote count but was barred by Congress from office for a decade over the dissolution decree.
Vizcarra’s downfall is emblematic of Peru’s “presidential carousel,” a phrase coined by analysts to describe the nation’s staggering instability. Since 2018, Peru has endured six presidents, with transitions marked by impeachments, resignations, and arrests—often intertwined with corruption. Kuczynski (2016–2018) fled to house arrest in 2019 over Odebrecht bribes; Vizcarra’s successor, Manuel Merino, lasted mere days in 2020 before public outrage forced him out; Francisco Sagasti (2020–2021) stabilized briefly as interim leader; Pedro Castillo (2021–2022) was ousted after attempting a self-coup and now faces rebellion charges alongside corruption probes; and current President Dina Boluarte, elevated from vice president in 2022, grapples with “Rolexgate”—allegations of accepting luxury watches as bribes—amid approval ratings hovering at 2–4% and widespread protests over crime surges.
This pattern has ensnared Peru’s elite: Toledo (2001–2006) is serving over 20 years for Odebrecht payments; Ollanta Humala (2011–2016) is detained awaiting trial on money-laundering charges; and Castillo joins them in the same Lima facility. By 2018, all living ex-presidents were under investigation, contributing to Peru’s 127th ranking out of 180 nations on the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index (score: 31/100). A 2021 AmericasBarometer survey revealed 88% of Peruvians view most politicians as corrupt—the highest in Latin America—fostering deep public cynicism and fueling protests that have claimed dozens of lives since 2022.
Experts attribute this crisis to structural flaws: a fragmented Congress dominated by fujimoristas and regional power brokers, weak institutional checks, and the Lava Jato revelations exposing how Odebrecht’s $29 million in Peruvian bribes greased wheels for infrastructure deals worth billions. “Peru’s democracy is resilient but exhausted,” said political analyst Carlos Meléndez of Universidad del Pacífico. “Vizcarra’s case isn’t isolated—it’s a symptom of a system where power rotates but corruption endures.” With 2026 elections looming, Mario Vizcarra’s candidacy could galvanize anti-establishment sentiment, but skeptics warn of more instability if judicial processes are perceived as weaponized.
As Vizcarra is transferred to prison, his saga leaves Peru at a crossroads. Will it catalyze reforms, like strengthening the judiciary or campaign finance laws? Or deepen the cycle of vengeance? For now, the man who once promised to clean house confronts the bars of his own making—or so his adversaries claim. The appeal process may drag on for months, but in Peru’s fractious arena, justice remains as elusive as stability.
