Open Letter to Preet Bharara
Dear Preet,
Your request for information from Swiss authorities regarding the investigation your office is conducting into Derwick Associates(link is external) has finally been confirmed.
As a direct victim of Derwick Associates, I sincerely hope your office arrives at the only conclusion any serious investigation can draw regarding this matter.
On November 25, 2013, I met in London with a Venezuelan lawyer named Amir Nassar Tayupe. Nassar was sent by a Colombian individual named Alex Saab. During our meeting, Nassar stated that “the people from Derwick contacted us to propose actions to silence them.”
Saab’s “business” activities are under fraud investigations by the Attorney General of Ecuador, while Nassar is one of Saab’s accused associates. However, it was only a year later, following a raid on my apartment and subsequent threats against my children, that Nassar’s words gained perspective.
Derwick Associates are not your regular contractors. Beyond the enormous overcharging that may have cost the Venezuelan state over a billion dollars, Derwick Associates has used U.S. courts to sue critics; obtained connections with Venezuelan officials to censor my websites in Venezuela; assaulted and threatened my perceived collaborators in Caracas; and is likely behind illegal surveillance, burglary, theft, and threats against my children in London. They employ U.S. lawyers to hinder criticism of their affairs, use American banks to launder millions through acquisitions and real estate investments, and have partnered with U.S. politicians to spread lies and misinformation.
Your office possesses evidence of their association with Pro Energy Services based in Missouri and their dealings with JP Morgan. You are likely to find that Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) transferred hundreds of millions of dollars to Derwick’s accounts at JP Morgan.
However, you may have missed some of Derwick Associates’ latest “business” ventures.
In July 2013, Reuters reported that PDVSA secured $1 billion in funding from Russia’s Gazprom for a project called PetroZamora. Sources leaked information regarding regular communications between Derwick Associates, Boris Ivanov (CEO of Gazprom), Rafael Ramírez, Eulogio del Pino, Víctor Aular, Álvaro Ledo, Abraham Ortega, and Renny Bolívar.
I was also leaked a document showing Orlando Alvarado (COO of Derwick Associates) and Christophe Gerard (partner of Boris Ivanov) as shareholders of PetroZamora.
Derwick had previously struck questionable deals with Gazprombank, while some of its U.S. partners (Joe Bradford) had been Gazprom employees in the past. Unconfirmed sources report that Derwick and Gazprom have arranged some deals through a Swiss bank called Banca Credinvest (where Betancourt may be a shareholder), allegedly linked to Antonio Pardo Andretta, brother of another Pardo.
CT Energy and CTVEN Investments are currently being sued in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (case 1:15-cv-09003) for fraud.
Derwick Associates spent $250 million acquiring nearly 20% of the shares of Pacific Energy, which is listed on Toronto’s stock exchange. They used a variety of shells and proxies in that deal, including: Diego Marynberg from Argentina and Suiza Domingo Guzmán López.
Derwick also employs the services of former U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republic, Hans Hertell, and a structure called White Bridge Capital, where Derwick’s COO Alvarado used to work. Hertell offered oil and gas to Morgan Stanley on behalf of Derwick.
As a defender of the fight against corruption, I appreciate your sustained efforts to curb the activities of these bullies, while looking forward to soon learning about the impending charges.
I remain eager to contribute information about the international activities and partners of Derwick Associates.
Sincerely,
alek boyd