Argentine VP Kirchner gets six-year jail term for fraud

An Argentinian court has found Vice President Cristina Kirchner guilty of corruption, sentencing her to six years in jail and banning her from holding public office for life.

Kirchner was declared guilty of "fraudulent administration" on Tuesday over irregular public works contracts awarded during her time as president between 2007 and 2015.

A three-judge panel found the Peronist leader guilty of fraud but rejected a charge of running a criminal organisation, for which the sentence could have been 12 years in prison.

It's the first time an Argentine vice president has been convicted of a crime while in office.

Her supporters vowed to paralyse the country if she were convicted.

They clogged downtown Buenos Aires and marched on the federal court building, beating drums and shouting as they pressed against police barriers.

"I won't be a candidate for anything, not a senator, or a deputy or president of the nation," Kirchner wrote on social media after the ruling.

READ MORE: Argentina's Kirchner goes on offensive over corruption charges

Verdict not firm

In Argentina, judges in such cases customarily pronounce verdicts and sentences first and explain how they reached their decision later, but given the public pressure in this case, they could offer some details before the panel’s full decision is read out loud in February.

After that, the verdict can be appealed to the Supreme Court, which could take years.

She'll remain immune from arrest meanwhile, as long as she can keep getting elected.

She has previously denied the allegations and called the court a "firing squad."

"It is evident that there is going to be a conviction," Fernandez de Kirchner said in an interview with the Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo published on Monday.

She alleged constitutional guarantees were violated during the process.

READ MORE: Prosecutor accuses Argentina's VP Kirchner over fraud, seeks 12 years jail