In brief
Colombian businessman Álvaro Pulido, 62, was arrested in the United States after prosecutors accused him of laundering more than $2 billion siphoned from Venezuelan welfare plans and state oil revenues. Pulido had been jailed in Venezuela since March 2023 for diverting profits from PDVSA and was the target of a $10 million U.S. reward. The arrest follows the U.S. court conviction of Venezuelan ally Alex Saab and underscores a growing U.S. crackdown on corruption connected to the Maduro regime. Pulido will face federal charges next Tuesday, joining a string of high‑profile Venezuelan‑linked figures charged with bribery and laundering. His detention reflects intensified U.S. efforts to tighten financial flows from Venezuela’s corrupt operations.
Colombian businessman Álvaro Pulido, accused of laundering over $2 billion siphoned from Venezuela’s welfare and oil programs, was detained by U.S. authorities in a Homeland Security operation.
Pulido, 62, had been jailed in Venezuela since March 2023 after he allegedly funneled money from the state‑run oil company PDVSA into private accounts. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and State Department offered a $10 million reward for information that led to his arrest.
He will be arraigned in federal court next Tuesday. Pulido’s case comes two months after fellow Colombian businessman Alex Saab pleaded guilty to money‑laundering charges in a U.S. court, and it follows the extradition of several Venezuelan allies accused of supporting President Nicolás Maduro’s regime.
According to U.S. prosecutors, Pulido and four co‑defendants bribed Venezuelan officials to secure contracts that supplied basic goods to poor Venezuelans, overcharging the state in the process. They also allege that Pulido and Saab laundered $350 million from a separate bribery scheme involving Venezuela's currency exchange system, moving funds through bank accounts in Florida.
The arrest underscores the U.S. government’s escalating effort to curb corruption and illicit financial flows linked to the Maduro administration. With Pulido’s extradition to the United States, U.S. authorities hope to disrupt further money‑laundering networks that aid Venezuela’s political elite.
