While managing the international crude oil trade at Petroecuador, Nilsen Arias Sandoval wove a network between foreign state companies, private oil companies, financial intermediaries, paper companies and other public officials. The United States Department of Justice unraveled the skein and established six bribery schemes in his indictment against Arias for possible money launderingwhich was made public last Tuesday.
Before this, it was already known that US prosecutors pointed to Arias as the possible beneficiary of bribes from three networks: two led by international trading companies Gunvor and Vitol; and the other, by the American asphalt company Sergeant Marine Inc.
The Justice Department is now known to target three other schemes. The first would expose the Corruption in the oil pre-sales delivered to Petrochina. The second involves a Latin American public company. And the last one uncovers possible irregular payments behind the purchase of diesel and liquefied petroleum gas.
US prosecutors have determined that in all six bribery schemes 33 actors participated, between public and private companies, financial intermediaries and officials of the Ecuadorian Government.
They maintain that Arias received $17.7 million in illegal payments and that part of this amount was shared with three other Ecuadorian public officials. The prosecutors already know the identity of these, but in the accusation they do not indicate their names, but only give a description of them.
Of “official 1” it is said that he worked in the public sector between 1997 and 2019; of “official 2”, who held a high-level position at Petroecuador for a relevant time; and of the “official 3”who had several important positions in the then Ministry of Hydrocarbons between 2013 and 2016.
Arias was the strong man in the oil business in the government of Rafael Correa. He held the position of International Trade Manager of Petroecuador between 2010 and 2017. From that key position he saw general managers of the state oil company and ministers of the hydrocarbons area pass by. He was immovable.
This newspaper requested an interview through his lawyer in Ecuador, María Teresa Torres, but Arias declined to comment. She stated that her client is collaborating with US justice.
The ghost of Petrochina reappears
One of the schemes identified by the Justice Department was formed in 2010 and targets oil sales contracts awarded to an Asian state-owned company. The profile coincides with the oil pre-sales delivered to Petrochinabecause there was no other Asian with this type of agreement in that year.
According to the US prosecution, three private companies benefited from those sales, as these companies gave their services to Petrochina. One was dedicated to trade, another to distribution and the other to the transportation of crude oil.
Prosecutors claim that these three companies gave bribes to Arias to maintain the contracts with Petrochina and that they did so through bank transfers and cash payments, with the help of an intermediary whose name has not been revealed.
As an example of these operations, the researchers indicated that this intermediary transferred approximately $818,000 to Ariasbetween February and June 2012, and that he shared part of that amount with “official 1”.
Thanks to the Panama papers, EL UNIVERSO revealed in 2016 that businessmen Enrique Cadena Marin and Jaime Baquerizo Escobar they reached an agreement with the company Castor Petroleum Ltd. to charge a $1 commission for each barrel of crude that Petroecuador delivered to Petrochina for an oil pre-sale contract signed in 2009.
That investigation showed that Petrochina transferred that crude to Castor Petroleum, trading company that belonged to the Gunvor Group.
Ecuadorians received commission for crude pre-sold to Petrochina
This Journal also revealed in 2020 that a company offshore of Enrique Cadena, Fairgate Trading Corp., received a total of $10.2 million from another Ecuadorian crude oil trader, Core Petroleum LLC, in eleven transactions carried out between 2014 and 2016.
These transactions were reported as suspicious to the US Financial Intelligence Unit (FinCEN) and appeared in another global-scale journalistic investigation called FinCEN Fileswhich was also led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
Core Petroleum LLC paid Enrique Cadena $10.2 million, reported as suspicious
Enrique Cadena rendered a version before the Ecuadorian Prosecutor’s Office in 2018, within the Petrochina case, which until now remains confidential. His lawyer at the time, Joffre Campaña, told the press that his client had no involvement in the investigated oil contracts.
A Latin American public company is involved
Another scheme identified by the Justice Department was formed in 2012 and involved a Latin American public company that had a contract with Petroecuador. According to the US indictment, the one that benefited from this business was a private trading company that promoted, sold and transported the oil object of that contract.
Prosecutors maintain that Arias knew in advance that the Latin American public company would maintain an agreement with the trading company and, therefore, helped the state company obtain the contract with Petroecuador and gave confidential information to three intermediaries.
One of these intermediaries was Antonio Peré Ycaza, who also faces an accusation for money laundering in the United States. According to judicial investigations, he also helped channel bribes in favor of Arias.
The indictment states that Peré Ycaza signed a false consulting contract with a screen company domiciled in Uruguay to collect $1 million, which was transferred to the bank account of a Panamanian company belonging to him. Peré Ycaza then delivered approximately $146,000 to Arias, the indictment concludes.
The purchase of diesel and liquefied petroleum gas, in question
The latest scheme is related to contracts that Petroecuador signed to buy diesel and liquefied petroleum gas. According to the US prosecution, this network was formed in 2014.
Prosecutors allege that Arias provided improper advantages to two trading companies to obtain and retain contracts with Petroecuador. In return, they add Arias received approximately $700,000 in illegal paymentswhich were done with the help of two intermediaries who had not been involved in the other schemes discovered.
The indictment specified that between December 2010 and July 2018 alone, Arias received transfers for a total of $137,000 from the company that was awarded the contracts for the purchase of liquefied petroleum gas. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
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