Fugitive businessman taken into US custody in Venezuela bribery case
He pleaded guilty last month and agreed to forfeit $195 million in a bribery scheme tied to Venezuelan state contracts, prosecutors said.
- On Sunday, U.S. authorities took Alvaro Pulido into custody following an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, and Homeland Security Investigations into a bribery scheme involving Venezuela.
- Indicted in 2019 and 2021, Pulido allegedly paid bribes to Venezuelan officials to secure state contracts with PDVSA, the state-run oil company, alongside business partner Alex Saab.
- Last month, Pulido pleaded guilty in a related bribery case, agreeing to cooperate against Maduro and forfeit $195 million in criminal proceeds; the State Department previously offered a $10 million reward for his arrest.
- Homeland Security Task Force spokesperson Nicole Navas Oxman confirmed the arrest Sunday, noting Pulido will make his initial court appearance Tuesday in Miami.
- Acting President Delcy Rodr faces pressure from Venezuela's ruling coalition to resist U.S. efforts to apprehend Venezuelan insiders, following the January ouster of Maduro by the U.S. military under the Trump administration.
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43 Articles
Businessman wanted for years for allegedly bribing Venezuelan officials finally in U.S. custody
Alvaro Pulido was indicted in Miami federal court in 2019 and again in 2021 as part of an investigation into his longtime business partner, Alex Saab, a one-time ally of ousted President Nicolás Maduro.
U.S. agencies and the Venezuelan government have not reported on this
Los Angeles Times
An entrepreneur was arrested after being wanted for years in the United States for allegedly paying bribes to senior Venezuelan officials in exchange for lucrative state contracts in Venezuela.
The DEA reportedly took the businessman out of a prison in the neighboring country to answer for alleged money laundering and fraud related to the Clap food program, according to federal sources.
Photograph of December 20, 2023 by the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro (i), while receiving Colombian businessman Alex Saab at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas (Venezuela). EFE/ Miguel Gutiérrez
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