Peru court orders Keiko Fujimori release

LIMA, Peru – A Peruvian appeals court on Wednesday, October 17, ordered the release of opposition leader Keiko Fujimori, who has been detained for a week after being accused by prosecutors of receiving money from Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht, a judge announced.

The court “provides for the immediate release of the detained suspects” in the case, including the daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori, said chief magistrate Octavio Sahuanay.

The 43-year-old Keiko Fujimori, the leader of Popular Force, the biggest party in Congress, was arrested on the orders of prosecutors investigating contributions to her campaign when she ran for president in 2011.

Prosecutors have since June been investigating allegations that three former presidents took bribes disguised as campaign funds from Odebrecht, which is at the center of political scandals across Latin America.

Up to her arrest, Fujimori had not been directly under investigation, as most of the prosecutors’ attention was on two of her senior 2011 campaign aides. – Rappler.com