A Miami-based financial advisor, Frank Roberto Chatburn Ripalda, a 42-year-old dual U.S. and Ecuadorian citizen, pleaded guilty to a money laundering conspiracy in federal district court in Miami.
The crime involved conspiring to promote violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and Ecuadorian bribery law violations by using the U.S. financial system to launder money.
Ripalda’s scheme related to a $3 million bribe payment to Ecuadorian government officials in an effort to obtain and retain contracts with PetroEcuador, the state-owned and state-controlled oil company of Ecuador.
According to his admissions at the plea hearing, Ripalda conspired with an oil services contractor to make bribe payments for the benefit of several then-PetroEcuador officials through the use of shell companies and bank accounts in the United States, Panama, the Cayman Islands, Curacao, and Switzerland.
He further admitted to conspiring with another Ecuadorian government official to conceal bribe payments intended for the official from Odebrecht S.A., the Brazilian construction conglomerate.
Ripalda is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Marcia G. Cooke on December 18, 2023 and faces a 20-year statutory maximum sentence.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), jointly under the auspices of the Global Illicit Financial Team, and by the FBI’s International Corruption Squad in Miami.
Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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