A court in Argentina on Wednesday upheld a six-year prison sentence and a lifetime ban from holding public office against former President Cristina Kirchner, according to a press release.
She was initially convicted in 2022 of embezzling public funds and subsequently appealed, but the federal criminal court upheld the original sentence, La Nacion newspaper reported.
Kirchner plans to appeal this new ruling to the Supreme Court. Until a final judgment is made, she will remain free, the story said.
During their term in office, the former head of state (2007-2015) and her late husband, ex-president Néstor Kirchner, who was in office from 2003 to 2007, are said to have awarded government contracts to a friendly construction contractor. without any bidding process.
According to the prosecutor’s findings, some of the inflated construction costs were later given to the couple. The now 71-year-old is said to have defrauded the state of approximately $1 billion in this way. She has denied the allegations and accused the judiciary of investigating her for political reasons.
Kirchner is as popular as he is controversial in Argentina. She served as vice president under former President Alberto Fernández, but was considered the real power broker in Buenos Aires. She is also being investigated in other money laundering and corruption cases.
Javier Milei, the current president of Argentina, sharply criticized Kirchner’s camp during his election campaign.
“Today we can confirm without any doubt that Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is guilty of corruption,” Milei shared on platform X after the verdict.
