Allard Prize For International Integrity

The former chief justice of Colombia's Supreme Court, Francisco Ricaurte, has been convicted of corruption. Ricaurte led a cartel of judges that accepted bribes from politicians being investigated by the court.

Belhassen Trabelsi, the brother-in-law of ousted Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for corruption. Trabelsi remains in France after several failed attempts to extradite him back to Tunisia.

Amid worsening crime and climbing COVID-19 transmission rates, Rio de Janeiro is still battling corruption. "The current state governor has been suspended over allegations of embezzlement of COVID relief funds. Three of Rio’s four previous governors are in jail or have served time."

A new report reveals that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoan used a loan from a state-owned bank to gain control of a large national telecommunications company. Critics worry the move may be used to limit information and suppress dissent.

As Guatemala begins reshaping its highest court, activists and observers have criticized the process as reports reveal attempts at influence peddling and manipulating the results. With the expulsion of CICIG two years ago, the court will be critical in prosecuting corruption.

One year ago this week, Aierken Saimaiti, a self-confessed money launderer, was gunned down in an Istanbul cafe. Before his death, the 37-year-old, Chinese-born Uyghur had provided journalists with a trove of records attesting to his role in funneling hundreds of millions of dollars out of Kyrgyzstan for a secretive smuggling syndicate.

South African police have issued an arrest warrant against a top official of the governing African National Congress (ANC) party on corruption charges.

Peru's Congress ousted President Martin Vizcarra on Monday in an impeachment vote over corruption allegations and his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. After the decision, dozens gathered at Plaza San Martin in downtown Lima in support of Vizcarra.

"Many entrepreneurs and business leaders today have likely participated in bribery in some capacity. The fact that we don't talk about it often or shine glaring spotlights on it further proves the depth of its entrenchment in our societies."

The United States has sanctioned top Lebanese politician and Hezbollah ally Gebran Bassil over alleged corruption. Bassil is the head of the Free Patriotic Movement and a leading candidate for presidential elections in two years.