Few entrepreneurs in Venezuela have managed to reinvent themselves with the skill of José Simón Elarba Haddad. What started as a judicial operator linked to the gang “Los Enanos” in the Supreme Court has transformed over the years into a recycled magnate, with interests in sectors as diverse as waste management, banking, telecommunications, and now, elite private education.
The latest move that raised eyebrows occurred after the seizure of the Jefferson School in Valle Arriba, Caracas, an institution with over 700 students, robotics classrooms, sports fields, and an amphitheater. It was owned by brothers Rafael Guillermo and Roger Vicente Perdomo Rodríguez, who were arrested for corruption as part of the 2023 Anti-Corruption Operation. After the raid, Elarba showed up at the school and proclaimed himself its new owner, according to eyewitnesses. To date, there is no official documentation to support this alleged acquisition, but in the Venezuela of influence, paper is not always necessary when power is held.
@elfarodelmorro_net José Simón Elarba, owner of Fospuca, illegally took over Jefferson School, which belonged to brothers Rafael Guillermo and Roger Vicente Perdomo, of Constructora HP #colegiojefferson #fospuca #baruta #pdvsacripto ♬ sonido original – el faro del morro
From Judicial Sewers to Urban Ones
Before becoming the visible face of Fospuca —the company monopolizing waste collection in Chacao, Baruta, and El Hatillo— Elarba was already involved in solid waste management firms like CAUVICA, chaired by his partner and political relative Carlos Uzcátegui Valero. CAUVICA left a trail of inflated invoices, unpaid labor liabilities, and irregular bids that barely scratch the surface of this group’s business history.
Uzcátegui is the father of Carlos José Uzcátegui, married to Gabriela Gill Márquez, daughter of Carlos Gill Ramírez (president of Corimon) and niece of Víctor Gill Ramírez (president of Fondo Común). This entire network, along with figures like Luis Alfonso Oberto Anselmi and Pedro Castillo, forms part of a boliburguesia protected by familial, financial, and judicial connections.
#17Jul | On the night of Thursday, July 17, entrepreneur José Simón Elarba received special recognition from Fedecámaras.
+ info here: https://t.co/1za3u3Ourf pic.twitter.com/D6P7JnY8Kk
— Caraota Digital (@CaraotaDigital) July 18, 2025
China, Contracts, and Tax Havens
In 2014, José Simón Elarba earned 28 million dollars for “consultations” to Ceiec and ZTE, two Chinese companies sanctioned by the United States for their role in digtial surveillance, internet censorship, and social control in Venezuela. The contracts aimed to win bids with Movistar and Cantv, using Elarba as an intermediary to “facilitate” contacts, confidential information, and agreements with state entities. All of this was recorded in the Pandora Papers, revealing offshore accounts in Singapore, the Cook Islands, and Luxembourg, where he funneled the millions earned from his “services.”
The firm used was Sylo Investments LTD, registered in the British Virgin Islands, through which he also bought properties in Miami and New York, including an apartment under the name of Astoria Universal LTD, a shell company. These financially questionable movements also placed him in the FinCEN Files, under the scrutiny of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
PDVSAcripto and the Digital Money from Looting
Elarba was also involved in PDVSAcripto, the recent financial scandal in the Venezuelan oil industry. Alongside Tareck El Aissami, Samark López Bello, and his historical partner Carmelo De Grazia Urdaneta (now a fugitive), they used cryptocurrencies to divert public funds under the pretext of evading international sanctions. While some fell, Elarba was rewarded with the presidency of Bancamiga, in what analysts call a further example of selective impunity: those who serve the system survive.
Family, Media, and Politics
His wife, Aitza Melo Castillo, is a partner at the law firm Gadea, Lesseur & Asociados, where his stepdaughter, Mariana Flores Melo, also participates, who is the partner of Henry Jesús Camino Muñoz, his business partner at Fospuca. Mariana, for her part, attempts to clean her reputation through a personal foundation and social appearances, yet in Caracas, everyone knows the origins of her fortune.
Aitza Melo Castillo, wife of José Simón Elarba
Elarba was also a shareholder in the newspaper El Nacional, alongside Miguel Henrique Otero. Interestingly, when the outlet was seized by order of Diosdado Cabello, Otero claimed to be a victim of the regime, but neither Elarba nor his partners intervened to prevent the newspaper’s downfall. Today, Jorge Makriniotis, former manager of El Nacional, is Elarba’s personal assistant, closing the cycle of betrayals and transactional loyalties.
Jorge Makriniotis, assistant to José Simón Elarba
Moreover, he maintains open relations with sanctioned individuals like Carlos Malpica Flores (nephew of Cilia Flores) and Raúl Gorrín (owner of Globovisión and reported CIA collaborator), thereby completing a power circle that connects chavismo, banking, media, and financial crime.
Recycled Impunity
José Simón Elarba represents the modern version of the boliburgués operator: he no longer hides behind power; he embodies it. He controls waste management, a bank, a school, properties in three countries, and appears in international corruption leaks.
In a country where forgetfulness is state policy, he personifies the impunity with a successful businessman’s smile. While you stand in line for water or electricity, Elarba profits from public contracts, hides millions in tax havens, and continues to expand his empire without anyone holding him accountable.