A key witness within the corruption case of a former mayor of Peru’s capital, Lima, has been discovered lifeless at his residence, Peruvian prosecutors say, lower than three months earlier than the trial is because of begin.
José Miguel Castro, who was residing below home arrest, was a municipality official throughout Susana Villarán’s time period as mayor from 2011 to 2014.
He was a co-defendant within the trial with Ms Villarán, who’s accused of receiving bribes price $10m (£7.3m) from Brazilian development companies.
In 2019, Ms Villarán admitted to receiving funds from these firms however denied that they have been bribes. Mr Castro was collaborating with prosecutors on the investigation. The reason for his dying will not be but identified.
“He was the second most necessary individual behind Ms Villarán,” prosecutor José Domingo Pérez advised Peruvian information channel Canal N.
“We have been anticipating his precious contribution” to the trial, he added.
Ms Villarán, 75, is accused of collusion, cash laundering and forming a felony organisation that acquired hundreds of thousands of {dollars} from development firms Odebrecht – now referred to as Novonor – and OAS.
Prosecutors stated Mr Castro was the alleged felony organisation’s second-in-command.
In 2019 Ms Villarán admitted taking funds from Odebrecht and OAS to finance her 2013 mayoral marketing campaign to remain in workplace, however denied they constituted bribes.
The trial is because of begin on 23 September.
Ms Villarán is certainly one of quite a few Peruvian politicians implicated within the Odebrecht scandal.
In 2016 the Brazilian development large admitted to bribing officers throughout Latin America and components of Africa with the intention to receive development contracts.
A variety of former Peruvian presidents have since been investigated, together with Ollanta Humala, who was sentenced to fifteen years in jail earlier this 12 months, and Alejandro Toledo, who was sentenced to greater than 20 years in jail final 12 months.
One other former chief, Alan Garcia, killed himself as authorities arrived at his home to arrest him in 2019.
An investigation towards one other former president, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, is ongoing. He denies the fees.
