Peru's Constitutional Court weighs appeal to overturn ex-president Humala's conviction

Peru's Constitutional Court is currently evaluating a habeas corpus petition from former President Ollanta Humala, who seeks to annul his 15-year prison sentence for money laundering. The conviction stems from the irregular financing of his electoral campaigns. Humala's defense team argues that the court should grant him the same leniency shown to presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori and former President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, whose similar charges related to campaign finance were either annulled or archived by the court. The defense contends that the acts for which Humala was convicted are no longer considered criminal offenses under current legal interpretations, particularly following the Constitutional Court's ruling in Fujimori's case. Humala alleges he is unjustly imprisoned for actions that the court has since deemed non-criminal. However, the anti-corruption prosecutor, Germán Juárez, argued against Humala's petition, asserting that the evidence against him is substantial and distinct from the Fujimori and Kuczynski cases. Juárez specifically cited allegations of receiving illicit funds from Venezuela in 2006 and from Brazil's Workers' Party via Odebrecht in 2011. Humala has been held at Barbadillo prison, reserved for former presidents, alongside other ex-leaders like Alejandro Toledo, Martín Vizcarra, and Pedro Castillo. His wife, Nadine Heredia, sought and received asylum in Brazil with their youngest child.