Alberto Fujimori, the former president of Peru who served a 16-year prison term for crimes against humanity, has died at the age of 86. He passed away in Lima on Wednesday, according to a statement from his family.
“Our father, Alberto Fujimori, has just departed to meet the Lord after a long battle with cancer,” his children Keiko, Hiro, Sachie, and Kenji Fujimori announced on social media platform X.
They requested that those who admired him join them in praying for his soul’s eternal rest, expressing gratitude with, “Thank you for so much, Dad!”
Fujimori, who led Peru from 1990 to 2000, was released from prison on humanitarian grounds in December 2022, partway through a 25-year sentence for crimes against humanity. His health had sharply declined following treatment for mouth cancer, sources close to his family told journalists earlier in the day.
Just a month before his death, Fujimori’s daughter Keiko had announced his intention to run for president again in 2026. Despite his plans, his legacy remains deeply controversial.
Fujimori, of Japanese descent, was imprisoned in 2009 for his role in massacres committed by army death squads in the early 1990s, which resulted in the deaths of 25 people, including a child, during purported anti-terrorist operations.
