A Colombian drug trafficker, Alvaro Pulido Vargas, known as German Enrique Rubio Salas, has been arrested in Florida. He is accused of laundering hundreds of millions of dollars through the U.S., linked to President Nicolás Maduro’s Venezuelan regime.
Pulido is facing charges in two separate federal cases and is expected to appear in court on Tuesday. Authorities have been offering up to $10 million for information leading to the capture of the 62-year-old.
Pulido is charged in two separate, significant money laundering schemes, both using the U.S. financial system to hide the profits from his bribery and greed off the backs of the Venezuelan people. He is no longer a fugitive from justice.
The schemes allegedly involved officials from Nicolás Maduro’s government. Maduro, currently held in New York, faces charges of conspiracy to torture, narcoterrorism, and cocaine-smuggling.
Information about Pulido’s arrival in the U.S., the location of his capture, and his cooperation status with investigators remains unclear. His legal representation hasn’t been identified yet.
Pulido, convicted in Italy in 1997 under his alias “German Enrique Rubio Salas” for drug trafficking, was indicted by the U.S. in 2019 and 2021. He will make his first appearance in Florida federal court.
Who Is Alvaro Pulido Vargas?
Pulido, identified as a Colombian businessman, collaborated with Alex Saab, a former ally of Maduro who pleaded guilty to a related money-laundering charge. Saab agreed to cooperate with U.S. prosecutors, forfeiting $195 million.
Pulido and Saab used Venezuela’s government-run food and medicine program, CLAP, to secure contracts valued around $1.6 billion. Prosecutors claim they inflated contract costs, paid bribes to Venezuelan officials, and moved money through accounts in multiple countries, including the U.S.
Pulido faces charges in two cases. The 2021 indictment includes a money-laundering conspiracy count and four money-laundering counts, each carrying a potential maximum sentence of 20 years.
The separate 2019 indictment involves a money-laundering conspiracy charge and seven counts centered on Venezuela’s currency-exchange system and a low-income housing contract.
Prosecutors say Pulido and Saab utilized false import documents and bribes to transfer approximately $350 million from Venezuela through U.S. accounts to overseas accounts. This conduct was termed as a betrayal to the Venezuelan people by U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones.
Venezuelan officials also arrested Pulido in 2023 amid a corruption probe into the state oil company, PDVSA.
The Latest On Nicolás Maduro’s Case
Maduro, aged 62, is facing a separate case in New York federal court. Alongside his wife, Cilia Flores, they face charges including narcoterrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, and weapons offenses.
On October 8, an additional charge was added, claiming the couple conspired to commit torture, including against U.S. citizens. Both have denied earlier charges and Maduro’s lawyer refuted the new accusations.
As alleged in today’s Superseding Indictment, for more than two decades, Nicolás Maduro Moros and Cilia Adela Flores De Maduro engaged in a conspiracy to commit torture, including the torture of United States citizens, in addition to the narcotics trafficking and weapons offenses.
Their lawyers requested the case to be dismissed, arguing immunity rights as the leader and first lady of Venezuela. Their next court appearance is scheduled for November 17, focusing on initial pretrial motions, including immunity claims. If the case proceeds, the trial is set for June 1, 2027.
Maduro, leading Venezuela since 2013, and Flores have been detained by U.S. authorities since January following their seizure in Caracas, later brought to New York for initial charges.