Phoenix 24
The former intermediary’s cooperation could expose how political power moved money across borders.
MIAMI, UNITED STATES
Colombian-born businessman Alex Saab, a former minister and close associate of deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, has pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering before a federal court in Miami. The charge concerns a corruption scheme involving Venezuelan government contracts and the movement of illicit proceeds through the American financial system.
Under the plea agreement, Saab will cooperate with United States investigations and forfeit approximately $195 million. His testimony could provide prosecutors with detailed information about financial networks associated with Maduro’s government, including the use of shell companies, intermediaries and falsified commercial documents.
American authorities accuse Saab of manipulating contracts intended to import food for vulnerable Venezuelans through the CLAP assistance program. Prosecutors maintain that companies connected to the businessman inflated prices, falsified shipping records and paid bribes to obtain public contracts. Investigators have also examined transactions involving Venezuela’s state oil company, PDVSA.
Saab was arrested in Cape Verde in 2020 and extradited to the United States the following year. President Joe Biden granted him clemency in 2023 as part of an agreement that secured the release of Americans detained in Venezuela. The current prosecution concerns alleged conduct that authorities say was not protected by that pardon.
His guilty plea has implications extending beyond financial crime. Saab possessed privileged knowledge of how Venezuela maintained international commercial operations while facing American sanctions. He could consequently become an important witness in other investigations involving former officials and figures close to Maduro.
The case also raises questions about the political use of criminal cooperation. For Washington, Saab may offer evidence capable of strengthening prosecutions against Venezuela’s former leadership. For Venezuelans, however, the central issue remains whether the recovery of stolen assets will eventually benefit the population whose hunger and economic vulnerability allegedly financed the scheme.
Corruption steals twice: first from public resources, then from public trust.