FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A former Venezuelan National Guard major pretended to be involved in the financing of food imports when in reality he was part of a $1.7 million fraud, according to U.S. prosecutors.
The Drug Enforcement Administration was still investigating the fraud that prosecutors reported involved Nepmar Escalona, a Venezuelan living in Fort Lauderdale.
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The scheme involved submitting fraudulent applications to the Venezuelan currency regulation authority and bribing Venezuelan officials, according to federal prosecutors.
Banesco Bank, the Central Bank of Venezuela, and Venezuelan customs authorities released U.S. dollars to Escalona, 47, and his co-conspirators, according to prosecutors.
Escalona admitted that “wire transfer proceeds of the fraud, as well as funds constituting bribes,” were sent to financial institutions in the U.S., according to prosecutors.
Court records show investigators believed Escalona “had accepted bribes and would accept bribes” related to port shipments when he wore a Venezuelan National Guard uniform.
Escalona, also known as Nepmar Jesus Escalona Enriquez, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy on Monday. His sentencing is May 23 and he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.