Luis Alfredo Motta Dominguez, Money Laundering, Florida 2019

Two former Venezuelan officials are facing charges in connection with a bribery scheme that netted more than $60 million in procurement contracts with Corpoelec, Venezuela's state-owned and state-controlled electricity company. Luis Alfredo Motta Dominguez, 60, a former minister of electrical energy in Venezuela and the head of Corpoelec, and Eustiquio Jose Lugo Gomez, 55, a former procurement director at Corpoelec, were charged in an eight-count indictment returned today in the Southern District of Florida with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and seven counts of money laundering.

The indictment alleges that Motta and Lugo conspired with others to launder the proceeds of an illegal bribery scheme to and from bank accounts located in southern Florida. According to the indictment, Motta and Lugo awarded three Florida-based companies more than $60 million in procurement contracts with Corpoelec in exchange for bribes paid to them or for their benefit.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Adolphus P. Wright of the Drug Enforcement Administration's Miami Field Division made the announcement. The investigation was conducted by the DEA Miami with assistance from the IRS Criminal Investigations Miami Field Office and the FBI's Miami Field Office.

On June 24, 2019, Jesus Ramon Veroes, 69, of Venezuela, and Luis Alberto Chacin Haddad, 54, of Miami, Florida, each pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga of the Southern District of Florida to one count of conspiracy to violate various provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

According to admissions made in connection with their guilty pleas, Veroes and Chacin agreed with each other and with other co-conspirators to make corrupt payments to foreign officials at Corpoelec in exchange for the award of procurement contracts to Florida-based companies. Under the terms of their plea agreements, Veroes and Chacin will each be required to forfeit at least $5.5 million in profits from the corruptly obtained contracts, as well as real property in the Miami area.

Luis Alfredo Motta Dominguez and Eustiquio Jose Lugo Gomez are scheduled to be arraigned in the Southern District of Florida at a later date. An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case is part of the Justice Department's ongoing efforts to combat foreign corruption and protect the integrity of the global financial system. The Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting all Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/two-former-venezuelan-officials-charged-and-two-businessmen-plead-guilty-connection-venezuela