Peru’s president faces impeachment threat after leaked videos of meetings

Peru’s president, José Jerí, is facing a growing push for impeachment after leaked videos showed him meeting with a Chinese businessman in Lima and failing to disclose the visits, prompting a prosecutor’s graft investigation and mounting motions in Congress. Leaked CCTV footage released this month shows Mr.

Jerí being dropped off by a car belonging to the presidency and covering his face as he entered Xin Yan Restaurant, owned by Yang Zhihua, and another video shows him in one of Mr. Yang’s corner stores shouting into his phone. Mr. Jerí has acknowledged the videos’ authenticity but did not log the visits as required by law.

He has defended himself by saying he knew Mr. Yang before taking office, calling him "Johnny," and describing the encounters as informal; he refused to provide his phone’s call history to lawmakers. Lawmakers and investigators have been skeptical. At least 20 members of the lower house have signed motions that could lead to impeachment; 66 of 130 votes would be required to remove the president.

Peru’s prosecutors said they opened an investigation into graft related to the meetings. Media reports and a confidential congressional report cited in coverage connect Mr. Yang to more than a dozen companies, state contracts and a disputed highway project, and a televised clip showed people collecting bags of goods from the store while someone off-camera said, "This is for the comandante." Several matters remain unresolved: two additional December meals Mr.

Key Topics

Politics, José Jerí, Yang Zhihua, Peru Prosecutors, Peruvian Congress, Lima