MIAMI — Alvaro Pulido, a businessman wanted in the U.S. for allegedly bribing top Venezuelan officials in exchange for state contracts, has been taken into U.S. custody, the Associated Press reported Sunday.
Pulido was indicted in Miami federal court in 2019 and 2021 in an investigation of his longtime partner Alex Saab, a former ally of ousted President Nicolás Maduro. The Drug Enforcement Administration and State Department had offered up to $10 million for information leading to his arrest.
A Homeland Security Task Force spokesperson said the arrest followed an investigation by the DEA, FBI and Homeland Security Investigations, but did not say how Pulido came into U.S. custody. He was expected in court in Miami on Tuesday.
Prosecutors allege Pulido and Saab used a web of offshore shell companies to route bribes to Venezuelan officials. Venezuela’s government had not commented.
Sources: Associated Press via KTAR News. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: Phillip Pessar / CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
