Venezuela's Corruption Exposed

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PDVSA's Eudomario Carruyo got $28 million bribe from Rafael Ramirez's cousin

7 years ago By Alek Boyd

Information about Banca Privada D'Andorra (BPA), a "primary money laundering concern" according to U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), continues to be published.

The latest shows how BPA Serveis (chaired by Higini Cierco) was instructed by Eudomario Carruyo, Petroleos de Venezuela's VP Finance, to create a Panamanian shell corporation called Bilford Investment Inc

As VP Finance, Carruyo had control over PDV Insurance Company Ltd. in Bermuda (graph by Neo4j / ICIJ). Carruyo approved some €330 million worth of insurance contracts to a company called I.S.B. SOCIEDAD DE CORRETAJE DE REASEGUROS C.A., controlled by Omar Farias (arrested for fraud in Dominican Republic). Luis Zabala, and Luis Mariano Rodriguez Cabello were also part of the deal. Zabala and Rodriguez Cabello would in turn cede shares in I.S.B. to Calabria Overseas S.A., controlled by Diego Salazar (first cousin of PDVSA CEO and arrested for fraud in Venezuela).

I.S.B. acted as intermediary between PDV Insurance Company Ltd. and London broker Cooper Gay, whose Colombia subsidiary was subcontracted for some policies.

Carruyo's Bilford received over $28 million in bribe payments through Panama's Highland Asset Corp. and several other companies controlled by Farias and Salazar. Evidence of all payments forms part of a current graft investigation in Andorra (picture).

Some of those being investigated for "major money laundering" in Andorra are either arrested, or wanted and on the run as the case of former official Javier Alvarado Ochoa. Most of Rafael Ramirez's entourage of executives at PDVSA have been arrested in Venezuela under fresh corruption investigations launched by Attorney General Tarek William Saab, who has also inititiated a criminal probe against Rafael Ramirez (according to sources also on the run and hiding in Italy).

Another probe was launched some years ago, when Salazar wired a €99,800 tip to a hotel employee in Paris. This resulted in authorities freezing some $200 million that Salazar had at the time in BPA. Salazar contracted former Prime Minister of France, Dominic de Villepin, to intercede with Andorran authorities. BPA also reacted to confiscation of Salazar's $200 million and hired Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon. Eventually, given silence of Attorney General in Venezuela (Luisa Ortega Diaz) to letters rogatory, Salazar got funds back.

Documents leaked to this site then exposed a scheme to syphon $4.2 billion from PDVSA. PDVSA's CEO Rafael Ramirez had a direct hand in approving deal through proxy Nervis Villalobos (arrested in Spain on corruption and money laundering charges).

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