The trip to Venezuela the then first lady Verónica Alcocer and the Catalan Manel Grau on January 31, 2025, who according to Eva Ferrer returned with 2.5 million dollars in gray suitcases, is not the only one that authorities are asking about.
Federal agencies already have documented a couple of movements of Spaniards and Alcocer, this time to United Arab Emirates, during the government of Gustavo Petro, in which they would have participated in meetings about million-dollar businesses.
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The journey through the Emirates
Verónica Alcocer in Dubai. Photo:Social networks
The then Minister of Science and Information Technology, of the Petro government, Yesenia Olaya told EL TIEMPO that the Catalan Grau participated in meetings where issues related to a million-dollar technology contract, for 630 billion pesos, were discussed, which ISA and its subsidiary Internexa have already asked to be investigated.
And Saúl Kattan, former manager (e.) of Internexaadmitted to EL TIEMPO that he was surprised when he saw Grau in at least one of those meetings.
And now, sources from the Government itself confirmed to EL TIEMPO that the Catalan was also on the institutional visit that was made to Abu Dhabi within the framework of the BioNube project. And that he accompanied the former first lady on at least two other trips to the United Arab Emirates.
One of the documented trips of the former first lady was in early February 2025 to Dubai for an exchange of knowledge, while talking about the BioCloud.
This newspaper established that they are seeking to contact Luis Miguel Merlano, then Colombian ambassador to the Arab Emirates, to find out details of those meetings. According to the media Las Dos Orillas, he came to that position through his countryman Verónica Alcocer.
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Merlano’s version
Ambassador Luis Miguel Merlano Hoyos. Photo:Chancellery
The Investigative Unit of EL TIEMPO located the former diplomat, who assured that the first lady’s visits to the United Arab Emirates were official and duly documented.
“Such information must be based on the reports sent to the Foreign Ministry. Most of them were given as invitations from the United Arab Emirates. COP28, and on two occasions the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity,” said Merlano.
When EL TIEMPO asked him what events Grau was at, he assured: “At COP28, if my memory serves me correctly, it was where Mr. Manel accompanied. And I don’t know in what condition, I had under my attention a delegation of more than 50 government officials, businessmen, media, communities, etc.”
The former ambassador also assured that no authority has asked him about these trips.
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‘We are not related’
Eva Ferrer and Verónica Alcocer. Photo:Social networks
And incidentally he denied that he had arrived at the embassy through Alcocer: “We are not related. My arrival at the Embassy responded to my professional merits and an impeccable resume, which can be consulted at the Foreign Ministry. My career and my professional credentials speak for themselves.”
It is expected that requests will begin to be made to the Foreign Ministry the reports that Merlano spoke about about Alcocer’s trips, to determine if, in addition to the exchange of knowledge on the topic of the BioCloud, other types of businesses and contracts were discussed.
In any case, Eva Ferrer, former advisor to Alcocer, also mentioned trips to the United Arab Emirates in her controversial statements.
During these trips, Ferrer located Carolina Plata, then director of the private homes of the Presidency, whom he claimed to be the alleged figurehead of the former first lady.
Alcocer has already come out to ensure that Carolina Plata is their trusted friend and, like the latter’s husband, Danilo Romero, they helped them financially after Petro left the Bogotá Mayor’s Office. But he denied any wrongdoing.
It is not ruled out that collaboration will be requested from the United Arab Emirates to clarify the displacements.
INVESTIGATIVE UNIT
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