In brief
United States authorities have seized Álvaro Pulido, a Colombian businessman accused of laundering more than $2 billion tied to Venezuelan welfare contracts. Pulido, 62, was apprehended during a Homeland Security Task Force operation and is slated to appear in federal court in Washington. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration had offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest, but did not specify how he was brought to U.S. custody. His case follows the recent guilty plea of fellow Venezuelan ally Alex Saab for a $350 million money‑laundering scheme that also involved U.S. financial systems. Prosecutors say Pulido and co‑defendants exploited corrupt contracts to overcharge the Venezuelan state and funnel profits abroad, including through Florida bank accounts.
Colombian businessman Álvaro Pulido has been detained in the United States on Sunday for allegedly laundering more than $2 billion in money linked to Venezuelan government contracts.
United States authorities announced that Pulido was seized by a Homeland Security Task Force, but they withheld details on how he entered U.S. territory. The man, 62, had been imprisoned in Venezuela since March 2023 after accusations of siphoning funds from state‑run oil company PDVSA.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and State Department had previously offered a $10 million reward for tips that would aid in his arrest and conviction. Pulido is scheduled to appear in federal court in Washington on Tuesday.
His arrest precedes the recent guilty plea of Alex Saab, another Venezuelan ally, who pleaded guilty to money‑laundering charges involving the country’s currency exchange system. Prosecutors say Pulido and four co‑defendants bribed officials to secure government contracts for food and medicine, overcharged the state, and laundered profits through banks abroad.
U.S. prosecutors allege that Pulido worked with Saab to move $350 million from a separate bribery scheme to Florida bank accounts.
The cases underscore escalating U.S. pressure on Venezuelan officials linked to Nicolás Maduro, whose former minister was recently extradited to the United States. Saab had been the minister of industry in 2024 before being removed from office and extradited after the U.S. raid on Caracas and Maduro’s subsequent trial.
