Perhaps the best example of how not to influence the judicial system of the United States is the backlash caused by Rudy Giuliani‘s clumsy attempts to free Alejandro Betancourt, who finances Juan Guaidó’s efforts to overthrow Nicolás Maduro. In Michael Nadler‘s Florida territory, the chosen newspaper regularly receives leaks from the Department of Justice highlighting Betancourt and his criminal associates’ involvement in massive corruption at the top of the Venezuela debate. Imagine attending one of those sunny cocktail events where the rich and powerful mingle, discussing how Jon Sale secured a gig for his friend Rudy Giuliani (likely a multi-million dollar one?) to pressure AG Barr on behalf of his client Betancourt, while everyone in town reads a series of “exclusives” published by The Miami Herald portraying Betancourt as the face of rampant Venezuelan corruption. Just like the pawn’s move, Sale is no stranger to corruption: after all, he was Giuliani’s lawyer during the “Congressional investigation into the president’s actions related to Ukraine.”
Nadler’s flurry of activity across different jurisdictions coincides with Giuliani’s lobbying efforts. Recently, Switzerland ruled against Betancourt, Convit, and their Russian/FSB associates, agreeing to the mutual legal assistance requests sent from Nadler’s office seeking detailed information about the accounts at Compagnie Bancaire Helvetique used to divert/wash billions of dollars from PDVSA. Also in Switzerland, FINMA, the financial regulatory authority, recently penalized Julius Baer for involvement in laundering PDVSA funds.
Gotham City reports today that Liechtenstein has just opened a criminal investigation into money laundering against Matthias Krull, a former employee of Julius Baer, and seven other individuals. This relates to the Money Flight Operation, also led by Nadler’s office, where Francisco Convit and Giuliani’s client played central roles:
The authorities in Vaduz are particularly interested in two million euros once deposited in an account at LGT Bank. According to the Liechtenstein Financial Intelligence Unit, these funds were transferred to the account of Portmann Capital Management Limited at Bank of New York Mellon. It was subsequently sent to an account belonging to Solar Cargo CA at JPMorgan Chase Bank. The laundered amount was ultimately funneled into Florida real estate, shell companies, and currency exchange systems.
Portmann Capital Management and Solar Cargo CA did not escape the scrutiny of American authorities. The former is a company registered in Malta, led by two Swiss nationals, Kurt Portmann, a financier based in Sarnen (OW), and his son Yves-Alain Portmann, a former UBS employee.
In the American complaint against Matthias Krull and seven others, the company is referred to, under the name “European Financial Institution 1,” as being at the center of the money laundering scheme involving the PDVSA complex. The document notably mentions a spreadsheet titled “Summary of the 600 Operation,” indicating that Portmann Capital Management received 20.4 million euros “as fees at a rate of 4%.”
According to the complaint, Matthias Krull had direct links to Portmann Capital Management. The document states that he was aware of the company’s structure and directed the transfer of funds from the company to the individuals involved in the PDVSA scheme.
Florida stands as an important electoral stronghold for the re-election of Donald Trump. It is a fact that Sale, Betancourt’s lawyer and orchestrator of Giuliani’s services, is leveraging his network to aid his criminal client. While some of Florida’s most “reputable” lawyers and lobbyists have no qualms about associating with individuals like Betancourt and engaging in money laundering, Nadler’s commitment to holding Venezuelan bullies accountable seems to pose a setback for Trump’s personal attorney and AG Barr’s plans.
We can only hope that Trump is not the source of Betancourt, which is a claim of Giuliani’s “national security” issue. If that were the case, he would follow Blagojevich’s path despite Nadler’s best efforts. If the Department of Justice drops its case against Betancourt, no other jurisdiction in the world will pursue him. We are already seeing this with Rafael Ramírez, Betancourt’s most important benefactor and chief architect of the PDVSA looting. Several sources claim that Ramírez has already reached an agreement with the Department of Justice and is assisting in actions against Maduro, Tareck El Aissami, and others, which could even lead to Venezuela being placed on the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.