Ecuador’s National Court of Justice handed former vice president Jorge Glas, 55, a new 13-year prison term on June 30 for embezzling earthquake-reconstruction funds, bringing his total number of corruption convictions to four and stretching his earliest release date to 2041. Judge Mercedes Caicedo also fined him $28,800 and issued a lifetime ban on public office.

Details of the Embezzlement Scheme
The money at stake came from solidarity taxes levied after the 7.8-magnitude 2016 quake that killed nearly 700 people and devastated Manabí and Esmeraldas provinces. Prosecutors told the court that large portions of the fund paid for “useless, unused and unnecessary” projects—including a bridge miles outside the disaster zone—rather than housing and schools for survivors.

Courtroom Evidence and Verdict
Audit trails showed cost overruns of up to 200 percent on several contracts, while e-mails traced pressure on officials to approve change orders without technical review. Finding aggravated embezzlement, the three-judge panel imposed the maximum 13-year sentence on Glas and on co-defendant Carlos Bernal, the former reconstruction chief, and ordered joint civil damages of $250 million. Defense lawyers argued that neither man directly handled disbursements and called the case “political persecution,” signaling plans to appeal.

Impact of the Embassy Raid
Glas’s legal saga turned international when police stormed Mexico’s embassy in Quito in April 2024 to seize him after he obtained asylum; the raid breached the Vienna Convention, led Mexico to sever relations with Ecuador, and left Glas back in maximum security custody. The court’s latest ruling underscores Mexico’s determination to hold him despite ongoing diplomatic fallout.

Political and Diplomatic Ripples
President Daniel Noboa’s government, which defended the embassy raid as a legitimate arrest of a criminal fugitive, has portrayed Monday’s judgment as evidence that anti-corruption efforts reach even the highest offices. Allies of former president Rafael Correa—himself sentenced in absentia to eight years for bribery—call the verdict weaponized justice. The United States last year barred both Correa and Glas from entering its territory over “significant corruption,” a designation Washington reiterated after the sentence.

Consequences for Glas and Bernal
Because Glas is already serving eight years for earlier Odebrecht-related convictions, the new term runs consecutively; his cumulative sentence now spans 21 years, pushing parole possibilities well into his seventies. Bernal faces the same 13-year term but no prior prison time. Both men must cover a share of the $250 million restitution order, which the Comptroller’s Office says will be pursued through asset-seizure proceedings if unpaid.

What Happens Next
Under Ecuadorian procedure, Glas and Bernal have ten business days to file a cassation petition focused on legal errors; if admitted, the Supreme Court could suspend enforcement while reviewing the record. Parallel civil cases target properties allegedly bought with diverted quake money, and international attention on the embassy incident guarantees that any appeal—and any future transfer between prisons—will unfold under close diplomatic scrutiny.