Former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo has turned himself in to a US judge for extradition

(CNN Spanish) — Alejandro Toledo, the former president of Peru, turned himself in to U.S. authorities this Friday to face extradition to his country, the Northern District Court of California told CNN.

In its message, the court further said that the former president had already received confirmation from the United States Marshals Service that it was in its custody.

A few minutes later, the service reported, “Alejandro Toledo Manrique is in US custody.” The Justice Department also confirmed this, but did not provide additional information, saying, “Due to longstanding policy, we do not comment on the timing of potential presentations for safety and security reasons for escorting law enforcement officers.”

Toledo turned himself in to authorities on Thursday after a judge in the U.S. District of Columbia rejected his defense’s last-ditch bid to block extradition.

According to a court document obtained by CNN, Toledo’s defense filed an emergency appeal to temporarily suspend detention and subsequent extradition while a pending motion for reconsideration in his case, filed Wednesday, is resolved.

In turn, the emergency appeal came hours after a California federal judge ordered the former president to turn himself in to federal agents on Friday to comply with his extradition.

According to the judge’s decision, Toledo “will be confined in an appropriate prison, where he will remain until he can be delivered to the Peruvian authorities.”

The former president has been under house arrest in California since 2019 in response to an extradition request sent to the United States in May 2018. Officials in Peru point to charges of conspiracy and money laundering against him. Toledo has denied the allegations and called them political persecution.

What are they accusing Toledo of?

According to the Peruvian prosecutor’s office, Toledo, who ruled the country between 2001 and 2006, allegedly accepted up to US$30 million in bribes from Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht to favor the company in securing contracts in the country.

The case includes testimony given in early 2017 by the Brazilian company’s former representative in Peru, Jorge Barada. The latter told the prosecutor’s office that he indirectly paid the ex-president to businessman Joseph Maimon, a friend of Toledo. The stated purpose was to support the company in the work of the Interoceanic Highway.

The prosecutor’s office says Odebrecht paid Toledo more than US$30 million. Maimon, who died in 2021, became a prolific collaborator in the Toledo investigation.

In addition, Toledo faces another extradition request, which is still pending with the US authorities, an additional case: the case of Ecoteva. Toledo testified at that hearing for prosecutors in 2014. The former president has maintained his innocence, as he did in front of CNN cameras in May 2017, months after the Peruvian justice system ordered detention against him for both cases.

Ecoteva’s case was the first trial opened by Toledo in Peru in 2013, and he was charged with money laundering. The prosecutor’s office is investigating the purchase of two properties in Lima in his mother-in-law’s name and the mortgage of two properties owned by the former president.

The prosecutor’s office says the operations were run off with money from Ecoteva Consulting Group, formed in Costa Rica and registered in a tax haven, and headed by the former president’s father-in-law. According to the prosecutor’s office, the purchase and payment of mortgages on the properties were made with money allegedly given to the former president by Odebretch.