The defendant used bank accounts in his name and in the name of a company he created in Florida to launder money he received between 2017 and 2018.
The United States Justice has requested 12 months in prison for former University of Miami professor Bruce Bagley, who pleaded guilty to laundering money from Colombian businessman Alex Saab, alleged front man of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and imprisoned in the United States.
Bagley’s defense, for its part, asked Judge Jed Rakoff, who is presiding over the case, that the sentence be equivalent to the time spent in prison since his arrest in October 2019 and that, therefore, he can regain his freedom, according to documents. published in the last hours in a court in New York.
Bagley, 75, pleaded guilty to laundering more than two million dollars last June, for which he could be imprisoned for a period of between 46 and 75 months, based on the agreement reached by the defendant when he admitted his guilt.
According to the prosecution, the defendant used bank accounts in his name and in the name of a company he created in Florida to launder $ 2.5 million that he received between November 2017 and August 2018.
Álex Saab’s company owes about $ 558,000 in taxes in Ecuador, reported the SRI
Before the togado is pronounced on November 16, Bagley’s lawyers and prosecutors have sent their arguments to the judge to defend the sentence they propose.
The Prosecutor’s Office maintains that “A jail sentence is necessary” as a deterrent because his conduct was serious and because the defendant has shown no remorse, but acknowledges that his “advanced age and health must be taken into consideration.”
Florida judge dismisses seven out of eight money laundering charges against Álex Saab, Maduro ally
The Government insists the judge that Bagley was aware that the money he laundered came “from a Saab plan to bribe Venezuelan politicians so that Saab could divert money from Venezuela’s food aid program. that it was destined to benefit the poor in Venezuela ”.
For his part, the professor’s lawyer alleged that it is the first time that Bagley has committed a “non-violent” crime, in addition to claiming his advanced age and that he is ill.
“Bagley has already suffered serious collateral consequences as a result of this conviction, including irreparable damage to his career, the stain on his reputation and stress that affected his wife’s health the year before her death,” the defense wrote. (I)
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