US prosecutors ask for confiscation of assets and properties for $ 176 million
United States Justice unified the criminal proceedings against the financial arranger Jorge Chérrez Miño and the former Isspol official, John Luzuriaga Aguinaga, for the investments of the Police Social Security Institute. In a new indictment filed Oct. 14, prosecutors asked for the forfeiture of assets and properties for at least $ 176 million.
The Department of Justice (Prosecutor’s Office) presented eight counts against the defendants related to alleged money laundering, bribery, promoting illegal activities and hiding illegal activities, among others. He also mentioned violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), such as a crime against a foreign nation, specifically Ecuador, related to bribery of a public official and the “embezzlement” of public funds.
These crimes add up to a total of 70 years in prison for Chérrez and 60 years for Luzuriaga, according to the accusation that appears in the public documents of the process.
The persons and entities cited in the process include, in addition to the two defendants and the Isspol, two Panamanian companies from Chérrez, the Centralized Deposit for Compensation and Settlement of Securities (Decevale), as well as the former manager of Decevale, Luis Álvarez Villamar.
“The purpose of the conspiracy for the defendants and their accomplices was to enrich themselves illegally by engaging in a scheme to bribing Ecuadorian officials and obtain or retain a contract and other commercial advantages, ”the prosecutors assured, noting that the bribes and funds related to the dishonest scheme moved through accounts in the United States.
The document reiterated the accusation that Luzuriaga would have received $ 1.39 million from Chérrez, while other former Isspol officials received around $ 1.2 million. The names of the other people are not mentioned.
Luzuriaga would have received this amount between 2014 and 2020 in three ways: checks, payments to relatives and deposits in a US account in the name of one of Chérrez’s mutual fund companies, prosecutors said. The dates and amounts of some transactions were included.
Another investment portfolio was opened to a second Isspol official.
The two types of Isspol operations related to Chérrez. The first is the swap or bond exchange that was carried out in January 2016 for $ 327 million, with internal debt bonds. The second are the so-called repos, which consisted of investments delivered to Chérrez at a certain term with foreign debt bonds as collateral. In this case, according to Isspol, the debt would amount to $ 226 million. Decevale supposedly participated in both as the depositary of these documents, but later the Depository itself reported that it had actually hired another Chérrez company as custodian.
Prosecutors again cited the conversations between Chérrez and Luzuriaga ranging from December 2015 to June 2018. These would talk about payments to three other Isspol officials and transfers to Álvarez Villamar for $ 3.1 million.
Prosecutors requested the seizure of property for at least $ 176 million, which represents the sum of the funds related to the crimes allegedly committed.
Luzuriaga has been detained since February of this year, while Chérrez would be in Mexico. (I)
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