The former Vice President of Finance of PDVSA, Víctor Aular, accused Rafael Ramírez of leading a corruption plot during his administration in front of the state oil company. He pointed it out in a posted video this Thursday by the attorney general, Tarek William Saab.
Aular has been detained since August 30, following the vice president of the Economic Area, Tareck el Aissami, filed a complaint with the Public Ministry to Ramírez for the alleged embezzlement of almost 5,000 million dollars from PDVSA.
“As a result of all the interrogations to which Aular was subjected, he clearly and absolutely confirmed the total responsibility as the intellectual and material author of the fugitive from justice Rafael Ramírez,” Saab said at a press conference broadcast by Venezolana de Televisión.
The prosecutor indicated that Aular was the one who signed a financing contract through which the resources of the state company were diverted.
In his testimony, the former Vice President of Finance assured that he acted under the orders of Ramírez. However, he acknowledged that he was aware that it was an illegal activity.
“I am currently being prosecuted. I am admitting my guilt. I signed those documents, I signed them with the presumption that there was an illicit exchange. However, at that time, being in office, I decided to do that, sign, and at this moment I am assuming my responsibility and I am confessing that I had responsibility in that operation, “Aular said in the video.
For his actions, Aular was charged with four crimes before the Fourth Court of First Instance in control functions with jurisdiction in crimes associated with terrorism.
“He was charged for his alleged commission of the crimes of fraudulent use of public funds, simple embezzlement, money laundering and criminal association,” he explained.
Saab denounced that Ramírez carried out the acts of corruption through the international auditing company KPMG. “She was fined for bad practices in audits where they make up corruption plots,” she said.
In addition, he indicated that Aular met with Ramírez in the United States from 15 to 20 times, while he was ambassador to the UN. “In those meetings, Ramírez asked him to help him gather material to justify himself in the corruption cases that were being investigated by this Public Ministry,” he said.
Others involved
According to Saab, Aular’s capture occurred on Wednesday, August 31, during five raids linked to the PDVSA corruption case.
He indicated that arrest warrants were also issued once morest Juan Andrés Wallis Brandt, Luis Oberto Anselmi, Ignacio Oberto Anselmi, Nervis Villalobos Cárdenas, Abraham Ortega Morales and Leopoldo Betancourt López and Rafael Ramírez Carreño, who is in exile in Italy.
Search warrants were also issued for 9 properties related to these people and measures were also requested to prohibit the sale and encumbrance, to block and freeze accounts and other financial instruments, and to seize assets.
“The Italian authorities must be thinking very carefully regarding their role in the fight once morest transnational crime. We are talking regarding a person who has been denounced with evidence of embezzling assets from Venezuela and taking it at his convenience for totally illicit use, “he concluded.
