Ricardo Fernandez Barrueco, Diosdado Cabello, the Khalil Majzoub brothers et al. discover online reputation management techniques.

Remember Ricardo Fernandez Barrueco? The bolibourgeois 'entrepreneur' who went from working in a parking lot before Chavez came to power in 1998 to having a net worth of over $1.6 billion in 2005? Well, he fell from grace with the dictator, and is meant to be doing time in Caracas' DISIP's dungeons. The poor chap (not) could teach the business world a thing or two: mind in roughly the same time frame Google made $191 million, he managed to amass in Venezuela a personal fortune of $411 million and 'built' an empire worth $1.6 billion.

Back in the day when vcrisis.com was popular, Kenneth Rijock, a banking lawyer turned-career money launderer, turned-compliance officer and Financial Crime Consultant, sent me a series of articles about politically exposed persons (PEP):

PEPwatch Venezuela: Beware Of Government-Controlled Private Corporations (Part 1), (Part 2), and (Part 3).

Rijock's articles identified some bolibourgeoises, namely Fernandez Barrueco, Sarkis Beloune Arslanian, General (retired) Gustavo Adolfo Sanchez Gonzalez, Khaled Khalil Majzoub and his brother Majed Khalil Majzoub, acting as frontmen of chavista officials such as Diosdado Cabello, Adan Chavez and Jessy Chacon. 

Some, or all, of the parties mentioned, must be planning for the future without Chavez, and have started to worry about information written by Rijock, published in vcrisis.com, and republished by Miguel at the Devil's Excrement. Either one of them, or someone acting on their behalf, has been sending me communications, demanding that I remove the articles identifying them written by Rijock.

Just to leave a record for future reference, I shall post here their communications and my replies.

On 8 Feb 2012, at 15:01, Rubin Ferzinger <Rubin.ferzinger@lawyer.com> wrote:

To Whom So Ever It May Concern

Admin,

I  want  to bring your concern to a very serious matter .The case have been solved earlier . The link 

"http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125" 

hosted on your website contains the content that is defacing my Client's reputation and affecting his Business and Social Life . Due to this content The following laws has been violated by your website :

According to Article 17 of the United Nations 

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states

1. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his honour and reputation.

2. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Basis of Liability for Cyber libel

a) Distributor/Publisher Characterizations: One of the most important issues in cyber libel is whether the online service providers, operators of bulletin boards or website owners are common carriers, distributors or publishers.

b) Publishers, such as newspapers, magazines and broadcasters, are responsible and liable for everything that they produce, post and broadcast. Their liability is grounded in the fact that they can edit what they wish to include and exclude from their publication, be it a newspaper, magazine, television broadcast, website or newsgroup. As the admin of this website you have the privilege to remove the page as soon as possible . So i request you to remove the page "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125" as soon as possible,else we will take the required legal action against you .I hope you will understand the seriousness of the matter and take the appropriate step.

Regards

Rubin Ferzinger

Legal Consultants Full Service Law

----- Original Message -----

From: Alek Boyd

Sent: 02/08/12 10:57 AM

To: Rubin Ferzinger

Subject: Re: Legal Notice(urgent action require)

Dear Mr. Ferzinger,

First of all, I do not appreciate legal threats.

Second, as a lawyer, you should know that the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights is an instrument that protects individuals from the actions of States.

Third, who are you, and, more importantly, who is your client?

Fourth, on what jurisdiction are you planning to "take legal action" against me, should I refuse to grant your client's wishes?

Fifth, what "case has been solved earlier"?

Answer those questions, if you could, and let us move this conversation along civilised lines.

Cordially,

Alek Boyd

On 8 Feb 2012, at 21:33, Rubin Ferzinger wrote:

Mr Boyd ,

You are asking about me I am lawyer if you could read the email id and the laws I have putted so that you could remove the article easily.

Now as you have said "I do not appreciate legal threats" let me give you a good answer Mr boyd According to the law, i.e. Article 17 the information you have posted in that article is defamatory.

As you have asked that "on what jurisdiction are you planning to "take legal action" against me"

this is because the article you have posted is not correct at all. All the information in that article is fake and spoiling the client reputation and affecting his business and social life as well.

You better know if you get a warning notice , this mean you should do accordingly, as directed in the email otherwise you might have to shutdown your website, no matter who so ever you are whatever the power you hold, you will be sued and you don't know whom you are messing with. This will really gonna cost you (Mr Boyd).

I have mailed in the sound of request but you took those words as a "Legal threat" inspite of legal notice. I think you sound like a illetrate one who actually hold the position of website admin to earn money no matter how, your idiotic articles can affects anyones social & professional life.

Oh! thats great "this is how you have ability to earn money"?

"http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125"   remove this article from your website otherwise I have to take an strict action against you." Mark my above words".

Regards

Rubin Feringer

----- Original Message -----

From: Alek Boyd

Sent: 02/09/12 04:30 AM

To: Rubin Ferzinger

Subject: Re: Legal Notice(urgent action require)

Para la atención de quienquiera que sea la persona que envía estos correos.

Amenazas del tipo, no van a lograr absolutamente nada.

Identifíquese, diga quién es, desde dónde escribe, y quién es su cliente.

Gracias.

Alek Boyd

On 27 Feb 2012, at 14:48, Rubin Ferzinger wrote:

Mr Alek Boyd,

we do not disclose our client information

The content which is posted on that article is defamatory and We suugest to remove this link "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125"

other wise show the proof regarding that article.

Regards

Rubin Ferzinger

Lawyer

On 27 Feb 2012, at 18:24, Rubin Ferzinger wrote:

Mr Alek Boyd,

nosotros no revelamos información de nuestros clientes

El contenido que se publica en este artículo es difamatorio y Sugerimos eliminar este enlace "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125"

espectáculo de otra forma la prueba con respecto a ese artículo.

On 22 Mar 2012, at 16:03, Rubin Ferzinger wrote:

Mr Alek Boyd,

nosotros no revelamos información de nuestros clientes

El contenido que se publica en este artículo es difamatorio y Sugerimos eliminar este enlace "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125"

espectáculo de otra forma la prueba con respecto a ese artículo.

On 22 Mar 2012, at 16:14, Rubin Ferzinger wrote:

Mr Alek Boyd,

nosotros no revelamos información de nuestros clientes

El contenido que se publica en este artículo es difamatorio y Sugerimos eliminar este enlace "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125"

espectáculo de otra forma la prueba con respecto a ese artículo.

si usted siente que mediante el bloqueo de mi correo electrónico de identificación no tendrá problemas para que luego son estúpidos hay maneras mucho para castigar a otros, gente como usted.

Note here how whoever is behind this changes the address and the name of the person allegedly demanding removal of information.

On 23 Mar 2012, at 21:20, ken Rijock wrote:

Admin,

As required under Sections 512(c)(3) and 512(d)(3) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. )512(c)(3) and 512(d)(3)), we are instructed to place you on notice that:

The matter which is posted on your website is copied from our News website i.e "http://devilsexcrement.com/".You didn't even gone through any copyright legal documentation.The link on which our matter is copied is this

1 . "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031125"

2.  "http://vcrisis.com/?content=letters/200602031132"

We want you to remove that above link .

DMCA Format

Name : Ken Rijock

Company Name : DevilSexcrement Media Group

Full legal name of the copyright holder : Ken Rijock

Contact email address : Ken.Rijock@journalist.com

Authorized Copyright Owner : Ken Rijock 

If you want any Assurance regarding the holder and Owner of the copyright my name is written there in the link .I solemnly request you to Remove the above stated URL 's.

If you have any query regarding this Please don't hesitate to contact me.

Regards

Ken Rijock

Senior Editor/ Journalist

Ken.Rijock@journalist.com.

-- End of messages --

All emails, whether from Ferzinger or Rijock, were sent from the same IP address:

Sender: 74.208.5.67, mailout-us.gmx.com, United States, Wayne, 40.0548 - 75.4083, AS8560 1&1 Internet AG

Since there is a business and commercial lawyer in New York called Rubin Ferziger -note the last name difference- I sent an email asking whether he was in any way related to these demands, but unfortunately it wasn't replied. 

I did the same with Ken Rijock, with whom I have corresponded since 2005-06, and with Miguel Octavio. Despite alleged claims made in the emails, neither of them is aware of any copyright infringement, as alleged, nor have they been contacted directly by whoever is behind this chavista online reputation management campaign.

To be frank, it is amusing to be threatened by these types. They are so hopelessly clueless as to how the internet operates, and what laws could be applied, that I can only conclude that they are chavistas. In Venezuela, these things are settled rather more mundanely: a couple of thugs pay a visit, give a beating, kidnap, shoot or kill whoever the target is, and that's that. The elegant way is to fabricate charges and have the chavista system of justice work its magic. But the hilarious thing is that this lot honestly think that they can have their way in other parts, just like they would in Venezuela, impersonating other people, misusing email addresses and blog names in order to scare some poor sod and get their way. 

Fernandez Barrueco et al may know a thing or two about stealing a country blind and become phenomenally wealthy in the process. But about how the web works, they are in the dark ages.