The Vice President of BOD International N.V., Carlo Balilla Battistini Samudio, also known as Carlos Balilla Battistini Samudio, is a Colombian entrepreneur who became a Venezuelan citizen in 2006. He has been involved in various controversial business schemes that have caught the attention of U.S. federal authorities. His name has been linked to businessman Alex Saab, accused of money laundering and drug trafficking, as well as to former Colombian senator Piedad Córdoba, who has been alleged to have ties with the FARC guerrilla. Additionally, he has been accused of defrauding clients of BOD bank, having connections with drug trafficker Walid Makled, and investing in opaque medical firms in Spain.
The Connection with Alex Saab and Piedad Córdoba
According to journalistic sources, the DEA is investigating Carlo Balilla Battistini Samudio for his involvement in the illegal business network of Colombian businessman Alex Saab, who remains imprisoned in the United States accused of conspiring to launder money from corruption schemes. The federal agency suspects that Battistini Samudio used his own companies and the BOD bank structure, where he was an executive, to hide and legitimize Saab’s illicit funds.
Another name that has emerged in connection with Battistini Samudio is that of Colombian senator Piedad Córdoba. Córdoba was reportedly Saab’s “godmother” in Venezuela, facilitating his contacts with the governments of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro. Battistini Samudio is believed to be close to Córdoba, as well as to Antonieta Jurado, the current wife of Miguel Henrique Otero, the editor of El Nacional newspaper.
The Supreme Court of Justice of Colombia has initiated a formal investigation against senator Piedad Córdoba of the Historical Pact party for the crimes of embezzlement and illicit enrichment. Documents related to the case reveal Córdoba’s ties to businessmen Carlo Balilla Battistini and Alex Saab.
According to the Supreme Court’s investigation, Carlo Balilla Battistini is allegedly behind the company Led Media Colombia (which has a sister company of the same name in Venezuela, also owned by Battistini), operating from the shadows. During 2009 and 2010, he is accused of financing events, advertising expenses, and charter flights for congresswoman Córdoba, her family, and others, as part of his involvement with the senator and his role as an intermediary in Venezuela. These favors resulted in unjustified enrichment for both Córdoba and her closest associates.
The Supreme Court reveals in documents that Carlo Balilla Battistini allegedly provided one million dollars to Piedad Córdoba. This significant sum is related to the financial commitments made by Battistini with the senator in exchange for her services before the Venezuelan government. The scandalous revelation shows that Led Media Colombia was merely fictional and that the funds were largely used to fulfill Córdoba’s financial commitments, leaving no trace of accounts receivable or debts under the company’s name.
Walid Makled García, a Venezuelan drug trafficker captured in Colombia in 2010 and extradited to Venezuela, has provided statements linking Carlo Balilla Battistini to Piedad Córdoba. According to Makled García, Córdoba recruited Colombian businessmen and introduced them to former president Hugo Chávez in exchange for millions in commissions. It has also been revealed that these businessmen were recommended by Battistini, who financed luxurious transportation means for the senator, such as a private jet. This friendship with Chávez facilitated access for both Colombian and Venezuelan businessmen to meetings with the president.
The Supreme Court has discovered over 80 deposits made to the relatives of Piedad Córdoba and her Legislative Work Unit (UTL) in Congress. According to the investigation, Córdoba allegedly carried out seemingly irregular activities through her advisor Andrés Vásquez, which generated significant income for her. Moreover, unjustified patrimonial movements amounting to hundreds of millions of pesos have been identified among her close family members, with no identifiable economic activity to support such income.
Alex Saab, a businessman from Barranquilla currently detained in the United States, has also been mentioned in the Supreme Court investigation of Colombia. According to the documents, Piedad Córdoba established a relationship with Saab in 2009, requesting financial assistance for her political activities in exchange for his intercession with the Venezuelan government to recover money from the National Foreign Trade Commission (CADIVI). Saab used one of his companies to channel the commissions Córdoba would receive for her illegal dealings in Venezuela.
This investigation is crucial for unraveling the full details of the ties among the involved actors and their impact on public resource management and politics in Colombia and Venezuela.
Carlo Balilla is a cousin of Braulio Sánchez, an alleged loan shark from Cúcuta, Colombia, who claimed to work on the Colombia-Venezuela border and testified against him regarding the alleged delivery of money from Venezuela.
Sánchez’s statement was made on April 22, 2022, at the Colombian consulate in Madrid, where he now resides. He testified before Judge Cristina Lombana, who asked Sánchez if he moved money from Venezuela to Colombia, to which he responded affirmatively, stating he “passed it in cash, mostly when there were debts to pay for the company.” Sánchez also stated they used third-party accounts but was never sure about the final destination of the money. During the hearing, Sánchez also mentioned that he met Piedad Córdoba in a well-known restaurant in Bogotá.
These are some of the numerous pieces of evidence and testimonies that Judge Lombana’s office has received in the ongoing case against senator Córdoba for ‘Farc-politics.’
The Reason for Financing Piedad Córdoba
According to the testimony of Andrés Vásquez, a former advisor, Piedad Córdoba received money from Carlo Balilla Battistini, described as a builder and media entrepreneur with business interests in Venezuela, to promote her presidential aspiration in Colombia. Battistini allegedly sought Córdoba’s mediation with the Venezuelan government to avoid the expropriation of his properties in Venezuela.
To channel the resources intended for Córdoba’s campaign, Balilla Battistini founded the company Led Media Colombia in 2009. According to Vásquez, the objective was to send one million dollars to support Córdoba’s candidacy and to help her gain control of the liberal party. However, Vásquez claims that the actual campaign budget was much lower and that Córdoba requested to inflate it so that Balilla Battistini would believe it cost a million.
The Colombian prosecutor’s office is conducting an investigation into these alleged payments from Battistini to Córdoba, based on intercepted chats and emails from the former senator and her close circle.
The Fraud Against BOD Customers
In 2018, it was reported that Carlo Balilla Battistini Samudio and his partner Eduardo Grijalva, who served as heads of Private Banking and Investment at BOD, had defrauded over 123 clients of the bank, which included former ministers from Hugo Chávez’s government and prominent businessmen. Battistini Samudio and Grijalva offered them returns of between 10% and 15% monthly on their dollar investments, which they never fulfilled. Affected clients expressed their concerns about the financial operations taking place on the fourth floor of the BOD tower in El Rosal, Caracas, where a sort of brokerage firm led by Battistini Samudio was operating.
Given the interest from federal authorities in the United States regarding Carlo Balilla Battistini’s situations, this may have led the National Credit Bank (BNC), owned by José María Nogueroles, to exclude Battistini from negotiations for acquiring the non-toxic assets of BOD in the sale executed by banker Víctor Vargas.
Víctor Vargas
Connections to Drug Trafficking
Carlo Balilla Battistini Samudio has also been associated with drug trafficking. He was mentioned by businessman Ernesto García, owner of the Transgar Group, during a hearing in the trial against drug trafficker Walid Makled, who was captured in Colombia in 2010 and extradited to Venezuela in 2011. García claimed to have known Makled through Battistini Samudio, who was commissioned by Governor Luis Felipe Acosta Carlez for the Coordination and Planning of Infrastructure and Development Projects in Carabobo in 2004. Battistini Samudio also had connections with Rafael Isea, who was governor of Aragua from 2008 to 2012 and became a DEA protected witness in 2013.
Walid Makled
Other Businesses in Venezuela
Carlo Balilla is a partner of COMERCIALIZADORA REBACEN, C.A., alongside his siblings María del Carmen Battistini de Samper and José Antonio Battistini Samudio. This company operates across various sectors, including industrial, construction, and more. Decades ago, it received recognition from Walter Wieland, president of General Motors, for their “hard work as suppliers, meeting their needs through a combination of quality, service, and prices,” according to Carlo Balilla himself. This is shown in an old photo that the businessman shared on his social media.
COMERCIALIZADORA REBACEN receives recognition from General Motors
Another of Carlo Balilla’s activities has been sponsoring the Venezuelan professional basketball team Trotamundos de Carabobo. In another photograph shared on his social media, he is seen signing a sponsorship agreement with team managers Idelfonso Diaz and Jimmy Blanco. The photo also shows the then-team captain, former Venezuelan basketball player Iván Olivares, who was captain of the sports team at the time.
REBACEN signs sponsorship with Trotamundos de Carabobo
Carlo Balilla has also shown his closeness to the entertainment world by posting an image alongside the late Mexican singer Vicente Fernández. It is unclear if the businessman has also ventured into the entertainment business or if it is merely an expression of admiration for the artist.
Vicente Fernández and Carlo Balilla Battistini
However, not everything has been success and glamour for Carlo Balilla. The businessman is being investigated by the DEA for the dealings he allegedly conducted through the Banco Occidental de Descuento (BOD) for Alex Saab.
Investments in Spain
Carlo Balilla Battistini Samudio has made investments not only in Venezuela and Colombia but also in Spain, where he owns several medical companies primarily located in Madrid and the Canary Islands. One of these is Clínica Téllez, dedicated to aesthetics, rehabilitation, and assistance for those injured in traffic accidents. Battistini Samudio acquired sole ownership of the company in October 2020, following the previous owners opening the doors five years earlier to another group of Colombian entrepreneurs, the Grupo Empresarial La Suegra. It is said that large sums of money channeled through executives, trusted men, and front men of Víctor Vargas—who has been accused of unpaid debts to depositors of the Banco Occidental de Descuento (BOD)—are freely circulating in Spain.
Carlos Balilla Battistini Samudio has invested in various medical-related societies in Spain since 2020. His daughter, Nadia María Battistini, serves as the sole administrator of three of these companies that focus on mediation in providing medical services, aesthetic services, physiotherapy, and rehabilitation. Furthermore, Carlos Balilla Battistini is Vice President of BOD International N.V., the new name for Banco del Orinoco N.V., which belongs to Venezuelan banker Víctor Vargas Irausquín and received approval to operate again in Curaçao after the insolvency situation that led to the liquidation of Banco del Orinoco N.V.
One of the companies Carlos Balilla Battistini acquired in Spain was Clínica Téllez SL, located in Madrid and founded in 1989. On April 12, 2021, Carlos Balilla Battistini became the owner of this company and appointed his daughter, Nadia María Battistini, as the sole administrator. However, commercial data consulted in November 2023 indicate that Clínica Téllez is in the liquidation process.
Before Carlos Balilla Battistini took control of Clínica Téllez SL, this company had other Colombian partners. On December 20, 2016, the incorporation of Grupo Empresarial La Suegra as a shareholder of Clínica Téllez was signed, as announced by the clinic itself on its website. Grupo Empresarial La Suegra is a conglomerate of businesses that includes nightclubs, music stations, bakeries, and a Colombian buffet, led by nightlife businessman Víctor Pereira Baides, who is also a member of the Board of Directors of Noche Madrid, an association defending the interests of nightlife establishments in the Spanish capital. Víctor Pereira Baides and Simón Hernán Lozano Montenegro, director of La Suegra FM, posed for a photo alongside the Spanish directors of Clínica Téllez during the presentation and signing event.
Carlos Balilla Battistini has not only shown interest in Clínica Téllez SL but has also purchased other medical-related companies in Spain. On March 23, 2020, he entered the ownership of Servicios Sanitarios y Parasanitarios SLP, a company located in Ciempozuelos, a municipality in the southern part of the Community of Madrid. Carlos Balilla Battistini is currently the owner of this company, with his daughter Nadia María Battistini serving as the sole administrator since July 23, 2020.
Another company acquired by Carlos Balilla Battistini in Spain is Centro de Especialidades Médicas ICOD SL, which operates Clínica San Marcos, located in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the most touristy locality in the Canaries, an island region with strong connections to Venezuelans. On June 25, 2020, Carlos Balilla Battistini became the owner of Centro de Especialidades Médicas ICOD SL, and appointed his daughter Nadia María Battistini as sole administrator on July 6, 2020.
The Connection with Banker Víctor Vargas Irausquín
Carlos Balilla Battistini has invested not only in the Spanish medical sector but also maintains a close relationship with Venezuelan banker Víctor Vargas Irausquín, owner of BOD, one of Venezuela’s major banks. Carlos Balilla Battistini serves as Vice President of BOD International N.V., the new name for Banco del Orinoco N.V., owned by Víctor Vargas Irausquín, which was intervened by the Central Bank of Curaçao in 2019, leaving many depositors without access to their funds. The Central Bank of Curaçao granted him a new license to operate in that country for the next 15 years in April 2021.
The board of directors of BOD International N.V. consists of individuals close to Víctor Vargas Irausquín, including his alleged new partner, Jenny Bastidas Ohep, who serves as president; Eduardo Grijalva, the country manager; Gabriel Falcone, the legal affairs manager; Ana Linda Abbondanza, the compliance manager; and José Ramón Medina Cervoni, the managing director. Some of these individuals are linked to the multi-million dollar scam known as “La Vuelta,” which occurred nearly two decades ago in Maracaibo, Venezuela, where high yields were promised to investors through fraudulent currency operations.
The Dubious Businesses of Carlos Balilla and Víctor Vargas
President of BOD, Víctor Jesús Vargas Irausquín, and his partner Carlos Balilla Battistini Samudio are under scrutiny for their alleged illicit activities in the financial sector. Both have been linked to the Pandora Papers, a journalistic investigation that revealed the existence of thousands of companies and offshore accounts that hide the wealth and power of prominent figures from around the world.
Carlos Balilla and Víctor Vargas
In addition, Vargas and Balilla face an arrest warrant issued by Panamanian authorities, accusing them of defrauding customers of AllBank Corp., an entity that was intervened by the authorities in that country in 2019. According to Panama’s Second Specialized Prosecutor’s Office against Organized Crime, the partners allegedly diverted bank assets to individuals within their close circles, including partners, employees, partners, and lovers.
The List of Frontmen
The Panamanian prosecutor’s office is investigating 35 individuals who allegedly received part of AllBank’s funds, which should have supported the bank’s operations in that country. It is presumed that Vargas and Balilla had insider information that allowed them to make these transfers before the bank intervention. The following is the list of those under investigation:
Amalitza Cecilia Frías de Rodríguez
Andrés Alfredo Iacobozzi
Antoneido de Jesús Ferrer
Carlos Balilla Battistini
Carlos Villena
Cristhian Manuel Ovalles Useche
Diego Enrique Lepage Gimón
Domingo Infante Tarazona
Héctor Miguel Carabano Melcher
Jesús Emilio García Otero
Joel Santos
Jonathan David Clavo Pineda
Jorge Luis Nogueroles García
José Ramón Medina Cervoni
Luis Antonio Llabaneros
Manuel Felipe Rosales Forsythe
Marbella Díaz Molina
María Montserrat Nogueroles García
Milagro Coromoto Ramírez de González
Nora Cecilia Bracho Parra
Ramón José Medina
Tamo Cohen Vera
The Internal Crisis at BOD Before the Sale
To make matters worse, Vargas continues to face issues in Venezuela, where the bank was the scene of an internal crisis leading to the resignation of several senior managers before its sale. They claimed they were subjected to harassment and pressures from Vargas’s girlfriend, Jenny Carina Bastidas Ohep, who managed the internal administration of senior management and was pregnant with the banker’s sixth child.
The resigning executives prepared a joint lawsuit against Vargas and Bastidas in 2021, accusing them of turning the bank’s headquarters in La Castellana, Caracas, into a permanent party, hosting special guests like Jesús Escudero Estévez and Raúl Baltar, Vargas’s partners in the Pandora Papers. According to the former executives, the new managers appointed by the couple participated in orgies with men and women in the San Judas estates of Caracas Country Club and Agua Linda in Tucacas, properties of Vargas and Escudero.
The ex-executives claim to have photos of these parties, which also allegedly reached the hands of Vargas’s wife, María Beatriz Hernández, who reportedly initiated separation proceedings after learning of the rumored affair between her husband and Bastidas Ohep.
Other Open Fronts
Vargas also faced liquidation decisions from Antiguan authorities regarding the bankruptcy of BOI Bank, another of his businesses that was intervened due to financial irregularities. He has also been linked with Diego Salazar, cousin of former Venezuelan oil minister Rafael Ramírez, who is accused of money laundering due to corrupt dealings in PDVSA. Both appear involved in companies registered in Andorra, a tax haven.
Against this backdrop, Vargas has tried to portray himself as financially insolvent, claiming he needs loans from friends to cover his ordinary expenses. However, this version contrasts with the distribution of his properties among the frontmen on the Panamanian list, revealing a strategy to evade claims and personal lawsuits made by those to whom he owes money.
Meanwhile, his daughter Margarita Vargas continues to rub shoulders with European royalty, attending social events, unfazed by the controversies surrounding her father and his associates.