Argentina's Supreme Court upholds 6-year prison sentence for former President Kirchner

By Sinan Dogan

BOGOTA, Colombia (AA) – Argentina's Supreme Court has upheld a six-year prison sentence and permanent ban from public office given in 2022 to former President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner over corruption.

Kirchner, who led Argentina from 2007 to 2015, decried the ruling, which confirmed her conviction in the Roads Administration Case for alleged corruption in public contracts.

She argued that the ruling reflected gender prejudice, saying the challenges she faced were magnified due to her being a woman.

Before the decision, supporters of Kirchner gathered outside the court in Buenos Aires, voicing solidarity with the former president.

Kirchner was sentenced in December 2022 to six years in prison and barred from public office following a corruption case in which she was accused of illegally awarding road construction contracts in Santa Cruz to businessman Lazaro Baez.

The verdict made Kirchner the first sitting vice president in Argentina's history to be tried and convicted on corruption charges.

Kirchner has consistently dismissed the allegations as politically motivated, arguing her sentence was predetermined.

The case, initially opened in May 2019, had sought a 12-year prison term for Kirchner.

*Writing by Alperen Aktas from Istanbul