Alex Saab, Hezbollah’s money man in Latin America, arrested in Cape Verde
Cape Verde authorities have arrested a Colombian businessman
of Lebanese origin, Alex Saab, who is considered the conduit of the Hezbollah
militia in Latin America, on charges related to money laundering and illegal
activities in Venezuela, according to his lawyer in Miami Saturday,
London-based Elaph news outlet reported Saturday.
Saab was indicted by the US justice department for money
laundering last July.
Cape Verde does not have a criminal extradition agreement
with the United States, and Mary Dominguez, Saab’s lawyer, confirmed his
arrest, without giving further details.
The United States accuses Saab and his trading partner,
Alvaro Boledo, of laundering and transferring $350 million outside Venezuela,
either to the United States or via the United States to foreign accounts. If
convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
The 48-year-old was detained on Friday on an Interpol “red
notice” stemming from the indictment.
Saab was reportedly travelling to Iran on a Venezuelan plane
and had stopped in Cape Verde to refuel.
US charges Venezuelan president with ‘narco-terrorism’
Saab is accused by the US government of serving as President
Maduro’s front man in a large network of money laundering and corruption.
He is accused of making huge sums of money from overvalued
contracts, as well as Venezuela’s systems of government-set exchange rate and
centralised import and distribution of basic foods.
Venezuela has faced chronic shortages of food and medicine
as a result of years of political and economic crisis.
“Saab engaged with Maduro insiders to run a wide-scale
corruption network they callously used to exploit Venezuela’s starving
population,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said when the sanctions
were announced.
“They use food as a form of social control, to reward
political supporters and punish opponents, all the while pocketing hundreds of
millions of dollars through a number of fraudulent schemes.”
Saab was also wanted for money laundering in his native
Colombia, where he is regarded as a fugitive from justice.
Saab and his Italian wife, Camilla Fabri, are also under
investigation in Italy for money laundering, according to the Italian press.
Washington has long accused the President Maduro of leading
a corrupt regime in Venezuela - a charge he has repeatedly rejected.
In March, the US charged him and other senior officials in
the country with “narco-terrorism”.
The Trump administration backs Venezuelan opposition leader
Juan Guaidó, who declared himself interim president last year.
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