Three Republican senators are demanding that the Justice Department drop its investigative file on Alex Saab, a man alleged to be a key financial intermediary between Venezuela and Iran.
President Biden granted the pardon to Saab, 52, in December as part of a broader prisoner exchange that secured the release of 10 Americans. Before his pardon, Saab was set to stand trial on money laundering charges.
“Saab remains an unrepentant criminal who, within days of his release from US custody, launched a propaganda campaign aimed at discrediting our country and American judicial and law enforcement professionals,” Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Chuck Grassley (R). -Iowa), and James Risch (R-Idaho) wrote in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland.
“The State Department has described Saab as ‘one of the two most important money [men] in Maduro’s government,’ and a ‘middleman’ between the narco-terrorist regime of Nicolas Maduro and Iran, the country’s biggest sponsor of terrorism,” the senators wrote, noting his efforts to circumvent Iran sanctions.
After his release, Saab was welcomed back by Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, and claimed that he had been tortured while awaiting extradition.
Nicolás Maduro welcomed Alex Saab back as a hero. AFP via Getty Images
Saab, a Colombian-born businessman, was indicted in 2019 by the Bogota Attorney General’s Office following a lengthy investigation but ultimately missed his handover deadline.
American prosecutors later alleged that he funneled approximately $350 million from Venezuela to the US and participated in a bribery scheme involving affordable housing contracts.
Authorities arrested him during a fuel stop in Cape Verde and extradited him to the US in 2020.
The trio of Republicans called for transparency on the matter and demanded the investigative file by February 7.
Marco Rubio is flanked by Lisa Murkowski and Chuck Grassley. EPA
“Court files reveal that Saab admitted to committing a serious crime [sic],” they continued. “The [US] closing the case against Alex Saab … there is no basis for withholding evidence against Saab from the American public.”
What attracts attention is the “confession” of Saab. He allegedly held a meeting with the Drug Enforcement Administration before he was arrested.
In 2022, his legal team claimed that he assisted US authorities in uncovering corruption in Maduro’s orbit, the Associated Press reported. Saab has denied this.
James Risch is the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. EPA
The Justice Department declined to comment.
Biden green-lighted the release of Saab and Leonard Francis, nicknamed “Fat Leonard” for his 350-pound frame, last month. The deal was signed shortly after the Biden administration lifted Trump-era sanctions.
As part of the deal, Venezuela released 10 American detainees and agreed to release 21 opposition politicians imprisoned in the country.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
