Former Peruvian president refuses to return to Peru citing political persecution

Former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo will not return to Peru as he feels he is the target of political persecution, said his wife Eliane Karp on Thursday.

According to the former first lady, the corruption accusations against Toledo are part of an operation by Keiko Fujimori's Popular Force party in order to discredit Toledo's government, which led the country from 2001 to 2006.

Keiko Fujimori is the daughter of former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000), who is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence for graft and human rights abuses.

"While this Japanese mafia exists, we will never return to glorious Peru. They have ruined Peru's deep essence," said Karp, referring to the Fujimori family's Japanese origin.

Toledo, who was a fierce critic of the Fujimori government, is being sought by Peruvian Justice Department to answer charges of receiving 20 million U.S. dollars in bribes from Brazilian construction company Odebrecht in exchange for granting a highway construction concession.

Karp is now in the United States with her husband, who is the target of an international arrest warrant for suspected crimes of money laundering and influence peddling.

The Peruvian Justice Department has issued an extradition request to the United States for Toledo, who is facing a provisional detention term of 18 months while the investigations into him continue. Endi