Presidential candidate Roberto Sánchez still has to answer to justice. Therefore, this Wednesday, the Judiciary (PJ) is evaluating whether or not he will be subjected to an oral trial for allegedly having provided false statements about the receipt of campaign contributions received between 2018 and 2020.
The Thirty-Third Preparatory Investigation Court summoned the parties to participate in the virtual hearing convened for 8:00 a.m.
The case is not new, nor did it appear overnight. Sánchez Palomino has been under investigation since 2020, and later, it was judicialized in 2023.
As revealed by El Comercio, the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) filed a new accusation against the leader of Juntos por el Perú (JP) and requested 5 years and 4 months of imprisonment against him in January of this year.
SEE: Roberto Sánchez: 164 pieces of evidence support the fiscal accusation against him for alleged false declaration
The prosecution accuses him of the alleged crimes of falsifying information about contributions and false declaration in administrative procedure, to the detriment of the National Office of Electoral Processes (Onpe).
Sánchez Palomino and his co-defendants face this process under the measure of simple appearance, a situation that was not changed after the new accusation presented by the prosecution.
Carlos García Asenjo, lawyer for Sánchez Palomino, told El Comercio that he plans to participate along with the presidential candidate in the scheduled hearing. However, he noted that due to the presidential campaign schedule, they do not know what will happen until Wednesday.
“Normally, Roberto Sánchez has always connected to the hearings, but since he is now campaigning, it is unknown how his schedule is. Normally, he always connects. We have discussed the possibility of both connecting from here, from the office, but as is known, the campaign is demanding and it is unknown what may arise between now and Wednesday. In theory, he should do what he has always done, which is to connect (to the hearing).”
Carlos García Asenjo, lawyer for Sánchez Palomino
New accusation against Roberto Sánchez Palomino
For two weeks now, a new judge has taken over the office responsible for deciding whether Sánchez Palomino and other accused will proceed to oral trial or not.
This is the substitute judge Juan Vidal Mercado Cahuana, who replaced magistrate Marianela Romero Barzola.
NEW JUDGE
Who is magistrate Juan Mercado?
Lawyer from the National University of San Agustín de Arequipa with a master’s degree in Procedural Law from the Catholic University of Peru.
He joined the Judiciary in 2021 through a competition for Substitute Judges. That is, lawyers appointed by the Judiciary to temporarily cover positions that have not yet been filled by Permanent or Provisional Judges through a public competition called by the National Board of Justice (JNJ).
According to various documents, Juan Vidal Mercado Cahuana was able to enter as a substitute judge after applying to the Superior Court of Justice of Junín.
“Through Administrative Resolution 656-2021-P-CSJJU/PJ, dated June 28, 2021, the Extraordinary Plenary Session Agreement of Friday, June 25, 2021, is executed and formalized, incorporating lawyer Juan Vidal Mercado Cahuana into the Temporary District Register of Substitute Judges of the Superior Court of Justice of Junín at the level of Specialized Criminal Judge, who is qualified to exercise the Magistracy,” reads Administrative Resolution No. 707-2021-P-CSJJU/PJ.
Thus, he began his career in the PJ as Substitute Judge of the Single Criminal Court of the Province of Concepción of the Superior Court of Justice of Junín.
The following year, the Superior Court of Justice of Junín ratified Mercado Cahuana in the position and office after establishing that the magistrate had achieved 106% of the established production goal, according to Report 000013-2022-UPD-GAD-CSJJÜ-PJ dated January 24, 2022. However, in May 2023, he resigned from the position.
By July 2023, through Call 002-2022-CDSJS-CSJLI-PJ, the Superior Court of Justice of Lima appointed him Substitute Judge of the Criminal Courts of Lima.
Since then, because he does not hold a permanent position, he has been assigned to various criminal courts and chambers. Thus, he has served in the Liquidator Criminal Court – Progreso Headquarters, Single Criminal Court – Flagrancy, 6th Preparatory Investigation Court of Flagrancy, 1st Permanent Collegiate Criminal Court – Iquitos Headquarters, Collegiate Criminal Court of Immediate Process – Barreto Headquarters, until reaching the 33rd Preparatory Investigation Court – Iquitos Headquarters.
In 2025, the National Control Authority of the Judiciary opened an administrative disciplinary procedure against Mercado Cahuana, in his role as Judge of the deactivated 28th Liquidator Criminal Court Anselmo Barreto Headquarters of the Superior Court of Justice of Lima, for the alleged minor offense provided in numeral 4) of article 46° of the Judicial Career Law, referring to: “Failure to exercise permanent control over assistants and subordinates or failure to impose appropriate sanctions when the case justifies it.”
However, through Definitive Investigation Resolution Eight No. 4525-2023-LIMA, he was acquitted of the charges for lack of evidence of the offense.
What is the accusation that will be analyzed in the hearing?
The accusation was presented by prosecutor Humberto Ruiz of the Second Office of the Second Corporate Criminal Prosecutor’s Office of Cercado de Lima-Breña-Rímac-Jesús María, attributing to Roberto Sánchez having falsified information regarding the contributions received by the political party Juntos por el Perú (JP) and stating that it had not received any contributions.
The prosecution maintains that for this, the party leaders would have signed documents and forms submitted to Onpe, with the purpose of certifying that JP “did not receive any type of financing or contribution in its ordinary party activities,” as well as within the framework of the 2018 Electoral Campaign (regional and municipal elections), “declaring inaccurate and/or unreal figures.”
Roberto Sánchez and his political ally Antauro Humala, sentenced for the crime of the “Andahuaylazo”.
/ SYSTEM
According to the prosecution, this information would be contrary to the record of money that entered bank account No. 191-90141971-0-94, opened in the name of William Ricardo Sánchez Palomino -brother of the now presidential candidate- who at that time held the position of president of the JP National Electoral Committee, for the sum of S/204,951.36.
“The accused Roberto Helbert Sánchez Palomino (and others) is attributed with having presented false information to the Party Funds Supervision Management of Onpe, regarding the electoral campaign for the 2018 elections, as well as regarding the party-economic activity (Annual financial information) of 2018.”
Humberto Ruiz, prosecutor of the Second Corporate Criminal Prosecutor’s Office of Lima
He is also accused of having declared false data in the Annual Financial Information for the years 2019 and 2020; as well as in the declaration of campaign income and expenses for the 2020 Congressional Elections, which were submitted to Onpe.
Regarding the 2019 financial information, they stated they had not received contributions, despite the fact that in the joint account No. 191-96430300-0-42 they received credits and deposits totaling S/75,750.00.
New accusation against Roberto Sánchez Palomino
Regarding the 2020 financial information, they declared income of S/27,400.00, claiming that part of it was an “in-kind” contribution for the “use of the party premises.” However, the alleged contributor of this asset, Edwin Espinoza, denied having made such a delivery.
Finally, regarding the income and expenses of the campaign for the 2020 Congressional Elections, the prosecution indicated that an amount of S/25,000.00 was declared as a “private in-kind contribution” linked to Roberto Sánchez. However, this did not correspond to reality, as there was no reference to the S/75,750.00 deposited into the joint account.
“As president of the political party Juntos por el Perú, he declared contributions and income totaling S/27,400.00 in the 2020 Annual Financial Information, declaring an in-kind contribution for the use of the party premises for 2020 (…) Onpe sent a letter to the declared contributor, Mr. Edwin Espinoza Chávez, via letter S/N with file No. 0048347-2021, in which this person stated that he did not make any contribution during 2020, from which it is inferred that the data submitted by the party does not correspond to reality.”
Humberto Ruiz, prosecutor of the Second Corporate Criminal Prosecutor’s Office of Lima
It should be noted that in September 2025, the court ordered the prosecution to adjust the accusation after the Superior Court ordered the dismissal of a third crime charged against Sánchez Palomino.
At that time, he had also been accused of fraud in the administration of a legal entity. However, with the dismissal of this crime, the alleged crimes of falsifying information about contributions and false declaration in administrative procedure remained in force, which will be analyzed this week.
What will happen in the hearing?
Fanny Uchuya, a criminal lawyer, explained to El Comercio that the hearing this Wednesday will start the intermediate stage of the criminal process. Understanding that if there is a new accusation request from the prosecution, the defenses of the accused can submit different writings to the accusatory request.
She explained that this stage would not be resolved the same day; rather, it would take some time, depending on the complexity of the case, the number of defendants, and the expeditious capacity of the magistrate in charge.
Therefore, she considered that this phase could take three months to a year. Ideally, she said, it should be quick, as it is a “hinge phase” that should not take longer than the oral trial, if there is one.
“So, in the intermediate phase, which is the transition stage between the end of the investigation and the oral trial, it is a formal control phase of this new accusation. That is, a new formal control is done to see if it complies correctly with the charges, if there are no excesses, if facts not included in the investigation have not been incorporated; in other words, it is a review phase to ensure the accusation is solid, not contradictory; only then can it proceed to oral trial.”
Fanny Uchuya, criminal lawyer
The accusation control, Uchuya said, is divided into three sub-stages. The formal issue, where it is reviewed that the accusation fits the investigation facts; then comes the substantive control phase, where the parties can raise exceptions, request dismissal or other motions.
Finally, the criminal lawyer indicated, the phase concludes with evidentiary control. Here all the evidence offered by the prosecution and the parties (testimonial, documentary, etc.) is analyzed to determine if it is useful.
“Once all these subphases of the intermediate phase have passed, only then will the judge be enabled to issue the new indictment order,” she noted.
Roberto Sánchez takes the lead over Rafael López Aliaga in the race to face Keiko. (Photo by Connie FRANCE / AFP)
