Colombia’s Attorney General’s Office said Monday it will file corruption charges against Ecopetrol President Ricardo Roa, alleging misconduct tied to his role as finance manager for President Gustavo Petro’s 2022 campaign and to contracting decisions at the state-run oil company, the Associated Press said. 

Prosecutors disclosed they have enough evidence to accuse Roa of helping Petro’s campaign illegally exceed spending limits. The Attorney General’s Office also said Roa will be prosecuted for influence peddling, the AP reported.

The influence-peddling case stems from allegations that Roa steered Ecopetrol contracts toward a company owned by a businessman who sold him a luxury apartment in Bogotá at a steep discount, according to the report. Roa has denied the accusations, including claims that Petro’s campaign exceeded spending limits.

Colombia’s National Electoral Council fined Roa and two other campaign administrators in November for allegedly exceeding spending caps and funding the campaign with money from illegal sources, the news agency said. 

Petro’s son, Nicolás Petro, is under investigation for money laundering and told prosecutors in 2023 that funds from a former drug trafficker were used in his father’s campaign, according to the AP. 

Read more at the Associated Press