2 YACHTS, A JET AND $1.8 MILLION SEIZED IN VENEZUELA MONEY LAUNDERING CASE IN US

The St Louis Post Disptahc reports that US prosecutors here are in the process of seizing a business jet (seized in October 2016), 2 multimillion dollar yachts (seized in 2016-17) and more than $1.8 million from 2 men linked to allegations of money laundering in Venezuela – being among the assets bought by Venezuelan nationals Hjalmar Gibelli-Gomez and Fabrizio Della Polla De-Simone.  Both have consented to the seizure and admitted the money laundering.  The assets were bought with profits from an illegal scheme to swap Venezuelan currency for U.S. dollars on the black market.  A former federal prosecutor is quoted as saying that forfeiture cases like the one in St. Louis have become common since the Venezuelan financial crisis and Venezuela’s efforts to control inflation by keeping currency in the country.