Mr. Grinda, you may not know me, but I take the liberty to introduce myself through this medium. I am a journalist by profession, Venezuelan, of Basque descent, and I have focused for the past 16 years on the corruption of my (former) country. When I refer to grand corruption, Mr. Grinda, I mean what you describe as “mafioso states.” It seems we share the good intentions and desires of those affected by our work.
Imagine my surprise when I read your comments during your recent visit to the Hudson Institute about your investigations into the Russian mafia in Spain. Isn’t it an undeniable fact that the Venezuelan mafia, let’s call it boliburguesía, roams freely in Spain?
Isn’t it evident that “Venezuelan fortunes” have landed, which are even legitimized by the Bank of Spain? Allow me to give specific examples. When the bankruptcy administration handling Viajes Marsans decided to sell the hunting ground of Diaz Ferrán to the executives of Derwick Associates, did any official bother to check the legitimacy of the millions from Derwick? When the same Derwick executive, Alejandro Betancourt, decided to inject millions of euros (all ill-gotten) into Spain’s most admired start-up (Hawkers), did any authority ask “where did this guy get the cash?”
When Juan Carlos Escotet, before the acquisition of Novagalicia by the FROB, wooed authorities with trips to tropical paradises during which he inflated his wealth beyond all logic and proportion to take over the entity, how can one explain the behavior of the Spanish official entities involved?
And what about the purchase of media outlets? There are the Neri Bonilla siblings: Francisco, Jorge, and Ana. Just a few years ago, they didn’t have a devalued Bolívar to their name, and suddenly, like winning the lottery, they show up in Madrid and acquire Cambio 16. They set up a business structure in the best tax havens and, just like that, are living the good life in the Motherland!
We could also discuss the sale of media, specifically the most prestigious ones in Venezuela: El Universal and Ultimas Noticias.
In the first case, a group of completely unknown Spanish operators in the industry took control of El Universal. They forged board meeting decisions, illegitimately took control of external companies in Panama, threatened the unaware owners, and just like in previous cases, they walk around freely.
In the second case, the fraudulent sale of Ultimas Noticias was funneled through England, a jurisdiction whose authorities I understand you resent for lack of cooperation. Nevertheless, it is possible to affirm that part of the money obtained from that transaction is being legitimized in Madrid, via real estate purchases specifically related to Axel Capriles and Miguel Angel Capriles Lopez.
There is more, Mr. Grinda, much more. We have the topic of Banco Madrid (Banca Privada D’Andorra) and the bribes received by one of the arrested individuals (Nervis Villalobos) from Duro Felguera. We also have Luis Carlos de León and Rafael Reiter, both arrested at the request, as I’ve been informed, of American authorities with whom, I hear, you maintain excellent relations and cooperation. I have, and have published, documents linking de León, Javier Alvarado, and Villalobos directly to Derwick Associates. Is anything being done about this?
Also in Spanish prisons are Claudia Diaz, assistant and go-between for Alejandro Andrade, one of the major responsible for the embezzlement of the chavista era; Roberto Enrique Rincón, son of another crook of the same ilk, who caused billions in losses to the Venezuelan treasury through price inflation in public contracting.
Among those detained, you have the real opportunity to dismantle very important parts of the chavista mafia network, as the arrested paid bribes to authorities who, in the end, awarded contracts. Claudia Díaz, for instance, can explain in great detail how Raul Gorrín was chosen by Venezuela’s Treasury to fraudulently extract nearly £3 billion. Rafael Reiter, a trusted person of former Minister of Energy and ex-President of PDVSA Rafael Ramirez, possesses information that inevitably implicates his former boss, who I understand comes in and out of Spain with absolute freedom, just like his brother-in-law Baldo Sansó.
And what about Nervis Villalobos? He really knows about plots: in Andorra, Madrid, Barcelona, Switzerland, Portugal, Miami, Venezuela, Panama, Barbados, and the Virgin Islands…
The Russian mafia, Mr. Grinda, is neither more powerful nor more harmful or dangerous than the Venezuelan one. It is painful for those of us fighting for a better Venezuela to see how other issues seem to have greater importance or relevance. It is frustrating to witness how individuals whose connections to the Russian mafia are well known, such as Alejandro Bentacourt, still operate freely with the “best of the best” in Spain. The same could be said for Wilmer Ruperti, a frequent visitor to the Westin Palace in Madrid, or Victor Vargas, Moris Beracha, Gustavo Mirabal, Pedro Trebbau, Francisco Convit, Atahualpa Fernandez, and a long list of others.
You mentioned a group, Solntsevskaya, with the closest ties to the Russian government: the four or five detained individuals, who display their “fortunes” and partners in Spain openly, while not forming a criminal brotherhood, are criminals who have facilitated the misappropriation and embezzlement of well over $9 billion, Mr. Grinda. I will go further; there is no criminal group in the Western hemisphere that has stolen more money or caused more damage than the so-called boliburguesía venezolana, which is nothing more than the group of facilitators that has helped chavismo -clearly a criminal organization- to remain in power.
Let me give you another example: during Rafael Ramirez’s management at PDVSA, about $1,246 billion entered that company. A part of it is being legitimized in Spain, right under our noses. Isn’t it time to start putting some order at home? Don’t you think?