Ecuadorian prosecutor requests seven years in prison for former president Correa for corruption.

Ecuador’s Attorney General Diana Salazar on Thursday requested a sentence of up to seven years in prison for former President Rafael Correa, who is on trial for allegedly receiving financal assistance from private companies during his 2013 election campaign in exchange for state contracts.

Salazar asked the National Court of Justice to impose “the maximum penalty envisaged for the offense of corruption and considered as aggravating, for Rafael C., as an indirect perpetrator, and for other officials and businessmen, as direct perpetrators,” the Attorney said onTwitter.

The former president, who is on trial in absentia, and 19 other defendants – including former vice president Jorge Glas, former ministers, former members of parliament and businessmen – face the possibility of sentences of five to seven years in prison if found guilty.

Glas is serving a six-year prison sentence for receiving bribes from Brazilian contractor Odebrecht.

“A structure was created to receive bribes in exchange for contracts. It has been determined that former president Rafael Correa Delgado was at the top of the structure,” the attorney general told reporters.

Salazar said she was also requesting a total of $1 billion in reparations for the state.

“We request a full reparation for the State and that consists of the total sum of the concession of contracts, which exceeds the amount of one billion dollars”, declared Salazar to the press..

The prosecutor added that the businessmen involved in the case are likely to have paid nearly $ 7 million in bribes to public officials to win contracts. The Public Ministry did not indict Odebrecht, despite the fact that the company was mentioned in the journalistic investigation of the La Fuente portal that gave rise to the case.

Former President Correa, who has lived in Belgium since leaving office in 2017, was linked to the case by a $ 6,000 deposit that a person who worked with his former aide made on his personal account. The former ruler claims it was money from a loan.

Correa criticized on Twitter the work of the prosecutor in the case. “It is incredible what this woman dares, without any proof. Fortunately, the only thing that overcomes your bad faith is your inability “.

A conviction would spell the end of Correa’s political career as the Ecuadoran constitution bars those convicted of fraud, corruption or illegal enrichment from standing for election.

Correa was implicated in the case by a $6,000 payment made to his private account

This is the second trial against the former president. The first corresponds to the alleged kidnapping of an opponent in 2012. This process, however, is suspended because justice requires Correa to be present for the trial.