A former Miami congressman who signed a $50 million consulting contract with Venezuela’s socialist government has been arrested in connection with an ongoing federal criminal investigation, law enforcement officials say.
WASHINGTON — A former Miami congressman who signed a $50 million consulting contract with Venezuela’s socialist government was arrested Monday in connection with an ongoing federal criminal investigation, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press.
Rivera’s Interamerican Consulting was sued in 2020 by PDV USA — a Delaware-based affiliate of Venezuelan-owned Citgo — alleging the former congressman performed no work as part of the contract he signed in 2017 for three months of “strategic consulting” meant to build bridges with key U.S. stakeholders.
Although Rivera’s contract was with a U.S. entity, any work he performed on behalf of Maduro’s government or Venezuelan business interests would have required him to register as a foreign lobbyist, which he did not. Records that emerged as part of the ongoing lawsuit show that Rivera’s consulting work was closely coordinated with Raul Gorrin — a Venezuelan insider and media tycoon who has been sanctioned and indicted in the U.S. on money laundering charges.
Some of the $15 million in payments that Rivera received as part of the contract were transferred to two of his associates as well as a Miami company, Interglobal Yacht Management, which PDV USA alleges was used to pay for maintenance on one of Gorrin’s superyachts. According to the lawsuit, Rivera’s Interamerican made just $9,500 in the year before being picked, out of the blue, by Maduro loyalists without any due diligence. Rivera never met in person with anyone from Citgo or PDV USA while supposedly working on its behalf. Instead, he filed two “deficient and incoherent” progress reports of the seven he was required to submit.
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