A public prosecutor has issued charges against the Belgian mother-in-law of former President Alejandro Toledo, over allegations of money laundering in connection to expensive real-estate purchases, according to daily El Comercio.
Prosecutor Elizabeth Parco also filed charges against David Eskenazi, who was the legal representative for Toledo’s mother-in-law, Eva Fernenburg.
The case, which was revealed last year in local media, stems from Fernenburg’s recent purchase of an office and a house in Lima for a total of about $5 million.
The purchase of the properties was made through two offshore companies, one located in Costa Rica that the mother-in-law reportedly set up in 2012, and another in Panama, which has connections to a Peruvian-Israeli executive with close ties to Toledo.
The allegations, made by Toledo’s political opponents shortly after questions arose on a real estate purchase by former President Alan Garcia, are that Toledo has used his mother-in-law to channel possible illicit gains made during his presidential term.
In January, a congressional committee approved a report that calls for Toledo to be charged with money laundering and unlawful association.
Toledo, who was president from 2001 to 2006, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Reports said that prosecutor Parco has at this time not charged Toledo nor his wife, Eliane Karp, because she is waiting for information from Switzerland and Panama to complete information on their possible involvement. Parco said that information thus far does not indicate that Toledo and Karp were necessarily aware of the sources of the money used to acquire the properties in Lima.
Toledo’s defense attorney, Luis Lamas, told the Andina news agency on Friday that he would be seek a judicial review of the charges because, he said, “the prosecutor has made some appreciations that are not true.”
Lamas said that the charges indicate that there is no proof of the provenance of the nine million dollars but that, to the contrary, the expert financial report not only does show the provenance but also shows there is no indication of any illicit or criminal source for the money.
You wonder why corruption goes all the way down to the smallest government official. Well it starts at the top and is just everyday business with all those people. The poor people suffer because they want to line their pockets for their own benefits. Why the people don’t stick together and stop this injustice. Think of all the people that could have water, electric and the basic things needed for a normal and quality life.