Alex Saab agrees to forfeit $195m under plea deal requiring full cooperation

Maduro and Flores seized by US military in January raid on Caracas

Alex Saab agreed Tuesday in a Miami federal court to forfeit $195m (£145m) and cooperate fully with US prosecutors under a plea deal that includes a clause requiring him not to “protect any person or identity through false information or omission,” BBC News reported.

Saab, 54, pleaded guilty to money laundering charges. As part of the plea, he must forfeit $195m, cooperate fully with US prosecutors, and could face up to 20 years in prison.

The cooperation clause has raised speculation that Saab could testify against former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and former First Lady Cilia Flores at their New York trial next year. The plea deal does not specifically mention the New York case against Maduro and Flores, but it includes a provision requiring Saab not to “protect any person or identity through false information or omission,” according to the deal.

Maduro and Flores were seized by the US military in a dramatic raid in Caracas in January. They are scheduled to face trial next year in New York on weapon and drug charges, which they deny.

Saab, a former Colombian businessman, was extradited to the US in May by Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez, who took over from Maduro, BBC News reported. He had previously committed to fight the charges against him before reversing course and entering the plea.

Saab, a former Venezuelan official and aide to ex-President Maduro, was accused of embezzling money from a Venezuelan government welfare plan intended to feed hungry Venezuelans and transferring some of the proceeds to US bank accounts, BBC News reported. Venezuela has faced chronic shortages of food and medicine during years of political and economic crisis.

This is the second US criminal case against Saab. In 2020, he was first extradited to the US to face money laundering charges alleging he siphoned $350m out of Venezuela. Former US President Joe Biden granted Saab clemency in 2023 as part of a prisoner swap that saw him released from a US jail and returned to Venezuela.

“Criminals like Alex Saab who stole from the people of Venezuela and worked to exploit and misuse American financial institutions to fund illicit activities will be held accountable by this FBI,” said FBI Director Kash Patel, according to BBC News.