Washington/He former Venezuelan minister Alex Saabwho declared himself this Tuesday guilty of money laundering in the United States, agreed to “give complete information” to the US authorities in which “senior officials of Venezuela” are implicated, as revealed in the agreement reached with the Prosecutor’s Office.
The 54-year-old businessman, born in Colombia, pleaded guilty to the charge of conspiracy to launder money in the federal court of the Southern District of Florida, where he had first presented himself as “not guilty” on July 24 after having been deported on May 16 from Venezuela by the interim Government of Delcy Rodríguez.
In his statement, Saab acknowledged that in 2015, when Maduro was president, he organized with “senior government officials” an “illegal scheme” with “bribes” and “illegal payments” from the Venezuelan public program Local Supply and Production Committee (CLAP), with money transfers to South Florida.
Saab acknowledged that he organized with “senior government officials” an “illegal scheme” with “bribes” and “illegal payments” from the Venezuelan public program Local Supply and Production Committee (CLAP), with money transfers to South Florida
The former minister mentions as alleged accomplices the Chavista José Gregorio Vielma Mora, who was then governor of Táchira, and the Colombians Álvaro Pulido Vargas, Emmanuel Enrique Rubio González and Carlos Rolando Lizcano.
But it also points to ‘co-accused 1’ and ‘co-accused 3’, two suspects that the Prosecutor’s Office did not publicly identify, in addition to ensuring that they “agreed to launder money and commit fraud” with “senior members of the Government of Venezuela.”
In exchange, Saab agreed to “fully cooperate” with the DOJ with “the provision of truthful and complete information and testimony, and the delivery of documents, records and other evidence” in “any judicial trial or process” requested by the Government.
“Likewise, the defendant agrees that he will not protect any person or entity through false information or omission, that he will not falsely implicate any person or entity, and that he will not commit any other crime,” the agreement states.
In addition, the businessman agreed to deliver $195 million, property and assets derived from the crimes to the Prosecutor’s Office, which set a period of fourteen days to reveal all assets related to the crimes.
Due to these conditions, the US Government agreed to request a lesser sentence for the former Venezuelan minister, who could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000, according to the 12-page agreement.
But the DOJ warned that it “reserves the right to evaluate the nature and extent of the defendant’s cooperation” as well as the “quality and importance” of the information for relevant investigations.
The DOJ warned that it “reserves the right to evaluate the nature and extent of the defendant’s cooperation,” as well as the “quality and importance” of the information.
This process becomes relevant because it occurs after Maduro’s arrival in New York in January, where he faces charges for ‘narcoterrorism’, drug trafficking and weapons possession.
Although the disclosed agreement does not mention the ruler deposed by the United States, Venezuelan opponent Carlos Paparoni, former deputy and leader of the Primero Justicia party, considers that “the importance of this is to open Alex Saab’s collaboration process with the” American authorities.
“Although everyone is thinking at this moment about Saab’s cooperation in the case of Nicolás Maduro, I think the relevance is that Saab has the secret and the money trail of many cases opened in the United States and thousands of more cases that may end up being opened,” he told EFE after attending the hearing.
