Roberto Prieto was the campaign manager for Juan Manuel Santos’s reelection in 2014. He has never held public office. However, he is one of the Colombians facing the most legal proceedings related to the Odebrecht scandal. He served a five-year sentence, was barred from holding public office for twelve years by the Attorney General’s Office, and on July 4, 2026, the Prosecutor’s Office announced new charges against him. This article traces the timeline of events, from his 2017 confession to the charges filed in 2026. An analysis of each aspect is included in Prieto’s file on Auditoría Abierta.
The short answer. In the Odebrecht case in Colombia, Roberto Prieto is an example of a sentence served from start to finish. He pleaded guilty to three charges related to the Ruta del Sol III project as part of a plea agreement, served five years, and was released in April 2022. Subsequently, the Attorney General’s Office barred him from holding public office for twelve years for concealing from the National Electoral Council a $1 million contribution from Odebrecht to the 2014 campaign. The latest development is the indictment announced on July 4, 2026, for illicit enrichment and procedural fraud, which is in its initial stages. He himself confessed in 2017 that Odebrecht paid for posters for the 2010 campaign, but that case has since passed the statute of limitations.
Who Is Roberto Prieto and Why Does His Case Matter in October 2026
José Roberto Prieto Uribe is a public relations specialist. He worked on Santos’s 2010 presidential campaign and managed his 2014 reelection campaign. Since he was never a public official, the crimes he admitted to are those of a private citizen who exploited his proximity to power. This nuance is important for understanding his case.
His case connects three issues that are usually treated separately: the Odebrecht bribes on the Ruta del Sol highway project, the financing of Santos’s campaigns, and the criminal liability of those who managed them. Furthermore, in 2026, the case returned to the spotlight due to the new indictment. To follow the other key figures in this same scandal, Bajo Lupa is publishing two additional case files: that of Luis Fernando Andrade, former director of the ANI; and that of Bernardo “Ñoño” Elías, the senator who served as a liaison with the construction company.
Timeline of the Prieto Case, Decision by Decision
| Date | Body | Decision | Level of Support |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 26 and April 28, 2014 | Odebrecht, Structured Operations Division | Two transfers totaling US$1 million to Paddington Ventures for “research services” | Documented by the Prosecutor’s Office and the Attorney General’s Office |
| March 14, 2017 | Interview on Blu Radio | Prieto admits that Odebrecht paid approximately US$400,000 for posters for the 2010 campaign | Proven by confession |
| August 28, 2018 | National Electoral Council | Declares that the authority to impose sanctions regarding the 2010 campaign has expired | No sanction, as the statute of limitations has expired |
| 2019 | Trial judge, preliminary agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office | 5-year sentence for forgery, influence peddling, and undue influence in contracts (Ruta del Sol III) | Final |
| December 5, 2020 | Office of the Attorney General | Referred to disciplinary proceedings for failing to report Odebrecht income to the CNE | Disciplinary Proceedings |
| February 22, 2021 | Prosecutor’s Office | Announces Charges of Money Laundering Involving Over $500 Million Pesos | No known formal charges filed |
| April 2022 | Sentencing Judge | Release for having served sentence | Proven |
| June 2023 | Office of the Attorney General | 12-year disqualification for lying to the CNE | Finalized through disciplinary proceedings |
| August 2023 | Odebrecht Case Analysis Group (Graco) | Report Reopening the Criminal Case Regarding the 2014 Contribution | Document from the Prosecutor’s Office |
| July 4, 2026 | Prosecutor’s Office | Announces charges of illicit enrichment and procedural fraud | Initial phase, no conviction |
2017: The Confession Regarding the 2010 Posters
Prieto himself kicked off the first public episode. On March 14, 2017, on Blu Radio, he admitted to an “irregular operation” during the 2010 campaign. Odebrecht paid approximately US$400,000 for posters to the Panamanian firm Impressa Group Corp. “I ordered the posters, and they told me the money came from Odebrecht,” he said, according to El Tiempo. He claimed that Santos was unaware of this. The former president denied knowing about the payment in a video, according to Semana.
The confession had no electoral consequences. On August 28, 2018, the National Electoral Council declared that its authority to impose sanctions regarding the 2010 campaign had expired, according to El Tiempo. In other words, the fact is proven by his own statement, but no sanction was ever imposed because the legal deadline had passed.
2019–2022: The Conviction Over the Ruta del Sol III Project
The Prosecutor’s Office accused Prieto of pressuring the National Infrastructure Agency (ANI), according to El País de Cali. The goal was to award an additional Ruta del Sol III contract to the Yuma concessionaire in exchange for 650 million pesos. The first to point this out was former Senator Otto Bula, who testified that one million dollars of the Odebrecht bribes was earmarked for the reelection campaign manager.
Prieto spent nearly a year in La Modelo prison while negotiating with the Prosecutor’s Office. At first, he pleaded not guilty. Later, he signed a preliminary agreement. According to Semana, he admitted to forgery of a private document on two occasions, influence peddling, and undue interest in the awarding of contracts. This reduced his potential sentence from 12 to 16 years to a five-year sentence. He served the remainder of his sentence at the Cantón Norte military garrison and was released in April 2022, according to Infobae. It is worth noting, as Blu Radio did, that this conviction was not related to the Odebrecht funds in the campaign. It was due to the contract with Yuma.
2020–2023: The 12-Year Disqualification
In December 2020, the Attorney General’s Office brought disciplinary charges against him for failing to report to the CNE in-kind contributions that the 2014 campaign received from Odebrecht, according to Infobae. According to the investigation, one million dollars was used to pay for polls and studies commissioned from Paddington Ventures Limited. The campaign’s advertising firm carried out these projects to conceal the donation.
In June 2023, the Attorney General’s Office sanctioned him with a twelve-year ban from holding public office and from government contracts, according to Infobae. It concluded that he lied in the income and expense report submitted to the CNE. The sanction was imposed after he had already served his criminal sentence. It is a disciplinary sanction, not a criminal one, but it is final.
2026: Charges of Illicit Enrichment and Procedural Fraud
On July 4, 2026, the Attorney General’s Office announced that it would file new charges against Prieto, according to Infobae. The facts are the same as in the previous case, now being pursued through criminal proceedings. Odebrecht made two transfers totaling US$1 million on March 26 and April 28, 2014, from its Structured Operations Division to Paddington Ventures. The funds passed through Kleinfeld Limited and Innovation Research Engineering and Development, based in Antigua. The stated purpose was “research services.”
The indictment adds another element: by failing to report that million, the campaign allegedly exceeded spending limits. Even so, he collected the state’s vote reimbursement, which *Semana* estimates at nearly $16,000 million pesos. Hence the charge of procedural fraud. The case was reopened following a Graco report from August 2023, amid inquiries from the U.S. justice system. Prieto’s attorney, Jesús Albeiro Yepes, described the charges as “inexplicable” and “clearly contradicted by the evidence.” As of October 8, 2026, the case is in its initial phase.
What Was Never Formally Charged: The 2021 Money Laundering Case
On February 22, 2021, while Prieto was still in prison, the Prosecutor’s Office announced charges of money laundering. According to KienyKe and Infobae, he allegedly received more than 500 million pesos through illicit contracts signed by Yuma Concesionaria and Consultores Unidos. His attorney argued that no one can be tried twice for the same acts. In July 2024, the Prosecutor’s Office charged his sister-in-law, Natalia Isaza, with money laundering involving 59 million pesos in invoices for work that was never performed. However, there is no record that the charge against Prieto was formally filed or that a verdict has been handed down.
What Prieto Says and What the Prosecutor’s Office Says
Prieto has consistently maintained two things: that Santos was unaware of the payments from Odebrecht, and that he neither participated in nor knew about the 2014 poll paid for by the construction company. Regarding the Ruta del Sol III project, he accepted the charges as part of a plea agreement. The Prosecutor’s Office, for its part, maintains that the $1 million from 2014 illegally enriched the campaign and that collecting the vote-buying funds despite exceeding the spending limits constituted fraud against the state. Regarding Santos, no court has established that he was aware of the contributions.
How to interpret this case
Three key points. First: Prieto has a final and served conviction, which is rare in this series. Second: the 12-year disqualification is final but disciplinary in nature. Third: the 2026 indictment is an accusation in its initial phase and should not be interpreted as a conviction. To compare with the other extreme of the same case, the Ñoño Elías case file shows a politician with three final convictions who is currently free.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Was Roberto Prieto in prison?
Yes. He spent nearly a year at La Modelo prison in Bogotá while negotiating with the Prosecutor’s Office. He then served the remainder of his five-year sentence at the Cantón Norte military garrison. He was released in April 2022 after serving his full sentence.
Why was Roberto Prieto convicted?
For pressuring the ANI to favor Yuma Concesionaria in the Ruta del Sol III project, in exchange for 650 million pesos. In a plea agreement, he admitted to forgery of a private document, influence peddling, and undue interest in contracts. The conviction was not related to Odebrecht’s contributions to Santos’s campaign.
What charges will the Prosecutor’s Office bring against him in 2026?
Illicit enrichment and procedural fraud, as announced on July 4, 2026. These charges relate to the $1 million that Odebrecht transferred in 2014 to Paddington Ventures for campaign polls. They also relate to the reimbursement of nearly 16,000 million pesos in campaign contributions, which was collected despite exceeding the legal limits. His attorney denies the charges.
Why did the Attorney General’s Office disqualify Prieto?
Because it concluded in June 2023 that he lied to the National Electoral Council by failing to report Odebrecht’s $1 million contribution to the 2014 campaign. The disqualification lasts for twelve years and applies to public office and government contracts.
Did Prieto admit that Odebrecht financed the 2010 campaign?
Yes. On March 14, 2017, he told Blu Radio that Odebrecht paid approximately US$400,000 for campaign posters through the Panamanian firm Impressa Group. He claimed that Santos was unaware of this. The CNE was unable to impose sanctions because it declared the case time-barred in August 2018.
Is Juan Manuel Santos implicated?
Prieto managed his campaigns, and the contributions from Odebrecht went to them. However, Prieto has always said that Santos was unaware of this, and no court has established otherwise. Santos denied knowing about the payment for the posters.
What was Paddington Ventures?
The company that received US$1 million from Odebrecht on March 26 and April 28, 2014, for “research services” related to Santos’s candidacy. According to the Attorney General’s Office and the Prosecutor’s Office, it was the vehicle used to conceal the construction company’s contribution to the reelection campaign.
Sources consulted
- El País (Colombia): Roberto Prieto, Santos’s former campaign manager, sentenced to five years in prison
- Semana: Five-year sentence for Roberto Prieto, Santos’s former campaign manager
- Blu Radio: Roberto Prieto’s Sentence Was Not Related to Odebrecht Funds in Santos’s Campaign
- Infobae: Roberto Prieto is serving his sentence in the Odebrecht case (April 17, 2022)
- Infobae: Roberto Prieto faces disciplinary proceedings over Odebrecht (December 5, 2020)
- Infobae: Roberto Prieto Disqualified Due to Odebrecht Case (June 6, 2023)
- Infobae: Roberto Prieto to Be Charged with Illicit Enrichment and Procedural Fraud (July 4, 2026)
- Semana: Roberto Prieto to Be Charged by the Prosecutor’s Office—Here’s the Story (2026)
- El Tiempo: Interview with Roberto Prieto on Odebrecht funds in Juan Manuel Santos’s campaign (March 2017)
- Semana: Odebrecht—Santos Addresses the Scandal Following Prieto’s Statements (2017)
- El Tiempo: CNE Declares Investigation into Santos’s Campaign Statute-Barred (August 28, 2018)
- KienyKe: Roberto Prieto’s defense team rejects new charges related to Odebrecht (2021)
- Infobae: Prosecutor’s Office charges Andrade, Prieto, and four others in connection with the Ruta del Sol III project (February 22, 2021)
- Infobae: Natalia Isaza was charged with money laundering (July 4, 2024)
This article compiles documented facts and allegations attributed to the individuals mentioned. The mention of an accusation does not imply its veracity, and the position of the person mentioned is stated in each case. Bajo Lupa offers Roberto Prieto a space to respond and will update the text as new information becomes available. Information verified as of October 8, 2026.
Investigative Journalist and Case File Analyst
Guzmán Fajardo Báez is an investigative journalist specializing in the scrutiny of judicial proceedings, the coverage of regulatory frameworks, and the analysis of the administration of justice in Guatemala and Latin America. His career is distinguished by a firm commitment to institutional oversight, examining legal case files, court rulings, and public records to accurately document the exercise of power.
At Bajo Lupa, he is part of the investigative team tasked with untangling legal controversies and high-impact political cases. His journalistic approach prioritizes analytical sobriety, rigorous respect for due process, and the exhaustive cross-referencing of primary sources, providing citizens with a documented perspective free from partisan biases.