Colombia's Corte Suprema de Justicia (Supreme Court of Justice) has confirmed that it is investigating former president Gustavo Petro over state contracts allegedly handed out in exchange for sexual relationships. The court's president, Justice Mauricio Lenis, told Colombian media on Saturday that the file is under seal and is being handled jointly with the Fiscalía General de la Nación (the attorney general's office).
Lenis said the conduct under examination spans two separate stretches of Petro's career: his years in Congress and his time in the presidency. He added that the court would make public the facts of criminal relevance and the responsibilities attached to them, without setting a timetable.
The complaint: one woman and some thirty people
The case began with a woman's complaint to prosecutors. In her account, she and around thirty other people obtained contracts with the state in exchange for sexual relationships with Petro. Her identity has not been disclosed.
Alongside the complaint came a video released by Deicy Jiménez, a former public contractor, who appears embracing and kissing the then president after an alleged encounter. There is as yet no formal indictment, no known case number and no precise dates for the events under investigation.
Petro's response
Petro rejects the accusations. On his X account he wrote that he never used "a state contract to obtain favours from anyone," and said he would answer to judges over the corruption allegations. He attributes the case to a plan by his political adversaries: since August he has led the opposition to the government of Abelardo de la Espriella.
His daughters Antonella and Sofía Petro issued a statement on Sunday asking that the complainant not be re-victimised and saying they trust their father will appear before the courts "without delay."
Why the case sits with the Supreme Court
The court's jurisdiction is not incidental. It investigates members of Congress and, in Colombia, also takes up the conduct of those who have held the presidency when the facts are tied to those offices. Petro served five terms as a member of Congress between 1991 and 2022 and was president from 2022 to 2026, so both stretches identified by Lenis fall within the court's reach.
The court's president had already addressed doubts about the impartiality of the process, saying the investigation would proceed independently. This is the first time Colombia's highest court has publicly confirmed that the file exists.
With information from EFE, AFP, Infobae and the Corte Suprema de Justicia of Colombia.
