International Crime Scholar Pleads Guilty in Money-Laundering Case
A acknowledged intercontinental scholar on drug cartels and money laundering has pleaded guilty to money laundering above his involvement in a Venezuelan bribery and corruption scheme.
Bruce Bagley, a professor at the College of Miami, admitted that, among November 2017 and Oct 2018, his company’s lender account gained around $2.five million from the overseas accounts controlled by a sanctioned Columbian businessman.
Bagley was arrested in November 2019 and pleaded not guilty at the time even so, he filed a observe in March indicating that he planned to improve his plea.
He is the creator of the guide “Drug Trafficking, Structured Crime, and Violence in the Americas These days.”
“Bruce Bagley … went from creating the guide on crime — actually creating a guide on drug trafficking and organized crime — to committing crimes,” the United States Legal professional for the Southern District of New York, Geoffrey Berman, mentioned in a press launch. “Professor Bagley admitted now to laundering money for corrupt overseas nationals — the proceeds of bribery and corruption, stolen from the citizens of Venezuela. Bagley now faces the likelihood of a lengthy tenure in jail.”
In accordance to court files, Bagley gained regular monthly payments from a corrupt meals enterprise operate by a Columbian businessman, considering the fact that identified as Alex Saab. Bagley transferred the resources to lender accounts controlled by a U.S. law enforcement informant, Jorge Luis Hernandez, while maintaining a proportion for himself.
Saab was sanctioned past yr by the U.S. Treasury Section allegedly profiting from a no-bid agreement to import meals to Venezuela. He was indicted in Miami in July for laundering money connected to a public housing software in Venezuela.
“I ought to have comprehended that the money concerned were being proceeds of illegal exercise,” Bagley mentioned in a federal court listening to.
Bagley has been on administrative depart at the College of Miami considering the fact that past drop.
His sentencing is scheduled for Oct one.
