Colombian-born businessman and former Venezuelan minister admits role in scheme involving food programme contracts and agrees to cooperate with US prosecutors.
Alex Saab, a close ally of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, has pleaded guilty in a US federal court to a money-laundering charge linked to a bribery and fraud scheme involving public contracts for food and medicine.
Saab, 54, entered the plea on Tuesday before US District Judge Kathleen M. Williams in Miami. He admitted to one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments and agreed to forfeit $195m in criminal proceeds. As part of the deal, he will fully cooperate with federal investigators, including providing debriefings and testimony if required. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; prosecutors have indicated they will recommend a reduced term based on the value of his cooperation.
Alex Saab Admits Venezuela Corruption and Money Laundering Scheme:
According to the US Department of Justice, Saab organised a nearly decade-long conspiracy to profit corruptly from Venezuela’s Comité Local de Abastecimiento y Producción (CLAP), a government welfare programme intended to supply subsidised food and medicine to the population during the country’s severe economic crisis. He and associates allegedly used fake companies, false invoices and fraudulent shipping records to skim hundreds of millions of dollars from contracts awarded to entities they secretly controlled. Proceeds were then laundered through shell companies abroad, including into the United States.
Saab further admitted exploiting connections to Venezuelan officials to access oil belonging to the state company PDVSA and sell it under false pretences while US sanctions constrained the country’s finances.
The Colombian-born businessman, who once served as Venezuela’s minister of industry under Maduro, was extradited to the United States in May by acting President Delcy Rodríguez. Rodríguez assumed power after Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were seized by US forces in a raid on Caracas in January. Maduro and Flores are currently detained in New York awaiting trial next year on separate weapons and drug-related charges, which they deny.
Saab Plea Deal Could Shed Light on Maduro-Era Financial Networks:
Saab’s plea has drawn attention because of his longstanding financial ties to the former president. US prosecutors have previously described him as a key figure who at times controlled funds linked to Maduro. While the current agreement does not explicitly reference the New York case, it requires Saab not to protect any person through false information or omission, raising the possibility he could become a witness.
This is not Saab’s first encounter with US justice. In an earlier case he faced accusations of siphoning approximately $350m from Venezuela. He was detained in Cape Verde in 2020, extradited the following year, and later released as part of a 2023 prisoner swap under the Biden administration before being returned to US custody this year.
CLAP was launched as a lifeline for millions of Venezuelans facing hyperinflation, shortages and currency collapse. Critics have long alleged that the programme became a vehicle for corruption, with contracts inflated or only partially fulfilled while politically connected intermediaries enriched themselves. Venezuelan authorities under Maduro had rejected such claims and portrayed Saab as a legitimate businessman and diplomat who helped the country circumvent sanctions.
Sentencing is expected in the coming months. In the meantime, Saab’s cooperation could yield further details on the financial networks that operated around the former Maduro government, potentially affecting ongoing US investigations into corruption and sanctions evasion linked to Venezuela.