Overview
- The Corte Nacional de Justicia convicted Moreno of cohecho and on Saturday, August 29, 2026 sentenced him to five years in prison and ordered perpetual disqualification from holding public office.
- Prosecutors say the Chinese builder Sinohydro paid about US$76 million in bribes for the Coca Codo Sinclair project and that Moreno and his close circle received more than US$1 million through offshore and shell companies.
- Roughly 20 people were also convicted or sentenced, including Moreno’s wife Rocío González, his daughter Irina, his brothers Edwin and Guillermo, businessman Conto Patiño and a former Chinese ambassador, with penalties that include prison terms, fines and orders to repay multiples of the sums received.
- Judges found Moreno used his vice-presidential position to intervene outside his remit to favor Sinohydro and documented transfers routed through fictitious consultancies and Panamanian entities to hide payments.
- Moreno denies receiving any money and says the case is politically motivated; the sentence is a first-instance ruling that can be appealed and could deepen political polarization and increase scrutiny of China-funded infrastructure in Ecuador.