Lima, Oct 22 (IANS): Peru's judiciary sentenced former President Alejandro Toledo, who was in office from 2001 to 2006, to 20 years and six months in prison after finding him guilty of aggravated collusion and money laundering in the Odebrecht case.

The decision was made on Monday by the second collegiate court of the National Supreme Court of Specialized Criminal Justice, making Toledo the first of four investigated former presidents to go to jail in the Odebrecht case, one of the largest bribery and graft scandals in Latin America, Xinhua news agency reported.

The 78-year-old former President was extradited from the United States in April last year to face charges for allegedly taking at least $20 million in bribes from Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction company, in exchange for a government contract to build the Interoceanic Highway linking Peru and Brazil.

During a hearing, Toledo insisted that he was "innocent," saying that "I never made any arrangement with (Jorge) Barata," former head of Odebrecht in Peru.