Peru: Probe into Odebrecht bribe scandal widened

Peru’s anti-corruption prosecutors have requested the country’s Attorney General to open investigations into the former legal representative of Brazilian company Odebrecht, Mr. Jorge Barata, over suspicions of collusion and participation in the payment of bribes for the construction of Lima’s metro railway.

The request by the prosecutors is added to a growing list of probes into Odebrecht, which includes the president of Peruvian construction company Graña y Montero, who is considered an accomplice of aggravated collusion, along with Mr. Barata.

Peru’s president, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, has said the impact of the Odebrecht scandal is likely to shave up to half a percentage point from this year’s growth. However, he said he was confident of a rapid recovery and an orderly exit by the company, keeping negative effects on the projects it managed to a minimum. Kuczynski was the Minister of the Economy during the administration of President Alejandro Toledo, who is currently on the run over his own involvement with the Odebrecht corruption scandal. The president has not himself been tied to any wrongdoing.

Full Content: Prensa Latina

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.