Gustavo Salazar, right, has stepped down from his BWF responsibilities ©BWF

Gustavo Salazar Delgado will be "excused from duties" as Deputy President of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) until a bribery investigation against him has been completed, it has been announced.

Salazar, who joined the BWF Council in 2007 before being elected to his current role six years later, is being probed for alleged involvement in a Peruvian money laundering case surrounding Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht.

It was reported earlier this week that he was "on the run" from the authorities over the case.

A Peruvian judge had ordered that the 52-year-old businessman be placed in pre-trial detention for 18 months before the hearing into the case.

"The BWF has accepted a request from its Deputy President Gustavo Salazar Delgado to be excused from his duties until an investigation against him is completed," the world governing body said in a statement today.

"The request stems from accusations against Salazar in his homeland, Peru, related to personal business matters. 

"They are entirely unrelated to badminton and Salazar's role as BWF Deputy President.

"In his communication to BWF, Salazar indicated he would step aside for the time being so as not to cause any reputational or undue damage to the BWF while the investigation is in progress."

Gustavo Salazar, second right, pictured in between Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Paris 2024 chief executive Etienne Thobois during Rio 2016 ©Getty Images
Gustavo Salazar, second right, pictured in between Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Paris 2024 chief executive Etienne Thobois during Rio 2016 ©Getty Images

Salazar had been re-elected unopposed to the role of Deputy President at the BWF Annual General Meeting in Australian city Gold Coast on May 20.

The corruption probe involved an alleged bribe worth $1.2 million (£929,000/€1.1 million), apparently offered to Jorge Acurio, former Regional Governor of Cusco.

It is claimed he was approached with the money by Odebrecht to give them the contract to build a new road in Cusco.

The firm has been accused of using bribery and corruption to secure around 100 projects in 12 countries, including some linked to last year's Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. 

Acurio allegedly used Salazar to help transfer the payments through offshore firm Wircel SA.

According to the Cuarto Poder newspaper, an attorney also heavily implicated in the case, José Zaragozá, has accused Salazar of direct knowledge of all of the payments.

Salazar has also played a role in securing marketing contracts for the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima.

He served as President of Asociación Lima 2019, a private company set up to manage sponsorships and broadcasting rights for the Organising Committee, until December 2016.