What began as a municipal procedure ended in a firm conviction for corruption. The Superior Prosecutor’s Office Specialized in Crimes of Corruption of Officials of Lima Norte managed to confirm the sentence, in the second instance, against the former mayor of Comas, Miguel Saldaña, and four other former officials for unduly favoring a large-scale real estate project.
In fact, the office headed by the superior prosecutor María del Carmen Ruiz Hurtado managed to ratify the sentence of four years of imprisonment against Saldaña – who is currently active in We can by José Luna— for the crime of incompatible negotiation, to the detriment of the District Municipality of Comas.
Next to Saldaña Jorge Ávalos, former assistant manager of Urban Planning, was also sentenced in the second instance; Juan Amésquita, former deputy manager of Private Works; as well as Lourdes Sánchez and Alejandro Odar, former municipal servants, all with the same sentence of four years and for the same crime (incompatible negotiation).
This information was confirmed by the Prosecutor’s Office itself through a publication on its social networks.
🚨 #TheLast | The Superior Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office of Lima Norte managed to confirm, in the second instance, the conviction of Miguel Saldaña, former mayor of Comas, for the crime of incompatible negotiation, after his management approved the construction of a shopping center that did not… pic.twitter.com/3eb6avqTrW
— Public Ministry (@FiscaliaPeru) January 29, 2026
In this context, the sentence in the first instance was handed down in September 2025, after an investigation carried out by the Provincial Corporate Prosecutor’s Office Specialized in Corruption Crimes of Officials of Lima Norte (Second Office).
The case began in 2017
The initial sentence was finally converted into 156 days of community work by decision of the Judiciary. In addition, those convicted were disqualified for five years from holding any public office and must pay, jointly, S/ 25,000 as civil reparation to the State for the damages caused.
Responsibilities were clearly defined in the process. Miguel Saldaña omitted to exercise the corresponding control over the procedures; Jorge Ávalos signed the approval of the urban authorization; Juan Amésquita authorized the building license; and Lourdes Sánchez and Alejandro Odar prepared the technical reports that favored the project.
During the procedure it was also established that the company delivered 200 tons of rocks to the municipality for prevention works in the Chillón River, a fact that evidenced the existence of an undue interest that compromised the transparency of the administrative procedure.
Likewise, senior deputy prosecutor Leidy Diana Cherrapano Collantes demonstrated that the then district mayor and the other four municipal officials approved the request without requiring environmental and road impact studies, despite the fact that the regulations establish them as mandatory.
The events date back to 2017, when the company Mall Plaza Inmobiliaria SA requested urban authorization for commercial use and the building license for the Mall Plaza Comas shopping center, seeking an accelerated and favorable process.
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