In brief
Alvaro Pulido, a 62‑year‑old Colombian national, has been arrested by Homeland Security forces in the United States on charges of laundering more than $2 billion linked to a Venezuelan government bribery scheme. Pulido had been detained in Venezuela since March 2023 for alleged PDVSA profiteering, and the U.S. DEA and State Department had offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest. His case follows the guilty plea of fellow Colombian businessman Alex Saab, a former minister closely tied to former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Pulido faces multiple indictments accusing him of overcharging the Venezuelan government for food and medicine contracts, and of using U.S. bank accounts to move illicit proceeds.
Alvaro Pulido, 62, a Colombian national, was detained in the United States on Sunday by a Homeland Security Task Force operation. The arrest follows an indictment by U.S. prosecutors accusing him of laundering more than $2 billion in connection with a Venezuelan government bribery scheme.
Pulido had been in jail in Venezuela since March 2023, charged with diverting profits from the state‑run oil company PDVSA. He had also been identified as a high‑profile figure in a scheme intended to funnel money from a Venezuelan welfare program to private parties.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the State Department had offered a $10 million reward for information that would lead to his arrest or conviction. Pulido is set to appear in court on Tuesday, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Pulido’s arrest comes just two months after Alex Saab, another Colombian businessman closely linked to the Venezuelan government, pleaded guilty to money‑laundering charges in a U.S. court. The U.S. State Attorney’s Office has charged Pulido and four other co‑defendants with bribing Venezuelan officials to secure contracts to provide food and medicine to poor Venezuelans, and with wildly overcharging the government.
According to the indictments, Pulido funneled as many as $350 million through U.S. bank accounts that were linked to a separate bribery scheme involving Venezuela’s currency‑exchange system and the use of Florida accounts.
Saab, who once held the post of minister of industry and was a key aide to former president Nicolás Maduro, was removed from his government position after Maduro’s seizure in January and was extradited to the United States in May. Saab pleaded guilty to money‑laundering charges last month, further highlighting the reach of the multi‑national corruption network that Pulido is alleged to have been a part of.
