Foreign Currency

U.S. charges Venezuelan media tycoon with money laundering


Raul Gorrin Belisario, 56, is at large and is wanted in the United States on money laundering charges. Photo courtesy of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/Release
Raul Gorrin Belisario, 56, is at large and is wanted in the United States on money laundering charges. Photo courtesy of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/Release

Oct. 23 (UPI) — The United States on Wednesday charged a Venezuela media tycoon for his role in a massive bribery scheme that saw hundreds of millions of dollars laundered through the U.S. financial system.

A Florida grand jury returned an indictment Wednesday charging Raúl Gorrín Belisario, 56, with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Federal prosecutors accuse him of participating in a massive $1.2 billion bribery and money laundering scheme.

According to the charging document, Gorrín conspired with others from 2014 to 2018 to bribe high-level Venezuelan officials to obtain foreign currency exchange loan contracts with state-run energy company Petróleos de Venezuela S.A.

He then allegedly laundered some of the proceeds from those deals through the U.S. financial system in Florida, where he and his conspirators are accused of purchasing real estate, yachts and other luxury goods while using shell companies and offshore bank accounts to conceal their bribe payments.

Prosecutors said he paid millions of dollars to secure more than $1 billion in illicit gains.

“Gorrín’s alleged conduct enriched corrupt government officials and exploited the U.S. financial system to facilitate these crimes,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said in a statement.

He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Gorrín is at large and was added to the U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s Most Wanted list in 2020, as federal authorities were seeking to arrest the Globovisión news network owner on similar money laundering charges.

He was indicted in that case in 2017. Federal prosecutors said he paid millions of dollars in bribes to two high-level Venezuelan officials to secure the rights to conduct foreign currency exchange transactions.



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