International
The laundering of 120 million from the sale of weapons to Obiang, close to an agreed sentence
The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office negotiates with the Russian businessman settled in Gran Canaria Vladimir Kokorev a conviction of conformity for the laundering of the undeclared 120 million euros that he claims he earned between 1999 and 2014, a profit that he attributes to the illegal sale of weapons to the regime of Teodoro Obiang in Equatorial Guinea.
On Monday, the sixth section of the Las Palmas Court plans to hold a first hearing on the so-called ‘Kokorev case’ after having rejected the request of the defenses to cede this file to the National Court, which already accumulates 16 years of history.
It is the Prosecutor’s Office itself that has announced that the hearing of May 19 is convened only “for compliance purposes,” because it is negotiating with the defenses an agreed conviction whose terms it assures that it will reveal that same day, if the defendants accept them.
Until now, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office had been requesting eight years in prison and a fine of 240 million euros for Vladimir Kokorev, whom he accuses of having laundered millionaire profits allegedly obtained from selling military equipment to Equatorial Guinea at prices that included “notorious cost overres”.
His wife, Yulia Maleeva, and his son Igor Kokorev face the same facts, for whom he demands six years in prison and a fine of 150 million.
The charges on which the Spanish Justice can demand responsibility from the Kokorev are limited to the crime of money laundering by the conditions that Panama put in 2015 to extradite them, when they were arrested in that country.
In an indictment to which EFE has had access, the Prosecutor’s Office describes Vladimir Kokorev as the “head of a transnational criminal organization” dedicated to the “corrupt trade in military defense equipment and dual use”.
Anti-corruption assures that the Kokorevs managed to generate “an illicit million wealth of at least 120 million euros, in the period between 1999 and 2014”, supplying “weapons of war” to the Government of Teodoro Obiang, at a time when Equatorial Guinea was forming its naval forces.
Through the accounts of its corporate network, he continues, they reached a circulation of 678.92 million euros from 59 transfers made by the Public Treasury of Equatorial Guinea and a company called Abayak SA.
The prosecutor even details in his letter that Vladimir Kokorev has links with the criminal organization of “a citizen of the Russian Federation convicted of illegal trafficking and smuggling weapons for carrying out the sale to China and Iran of cruise missiles with nuclear loading capacity.”
“That activity (with Equatorial Guinea), never declared and always hidden,” says the Prosecutor’s Office, was carried out through two Panamanian companies (Kalunga Company SA and Intracoastal Trading) and another of the Scheychelles Islands (SJ Marine Company Ltd.)”, which gave “coverage” to the “multiple contracts” concluded by Vladimir Kokorev.
“All made with notorious overcost and overbilling imputed to the Public Treasury of Malabo, for the sale of military weapons, war and naval infrastructure, sold in collusion with officials and senior military dignitaries to the Government of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea,” he continues.
Anti-corruption also formulates the same charges against a lawyer from Gran Canaria who allegedly collaborated in money laundering, Juan José Arencibia, and two sisters of this one, for whom he asks for sentences of five years in prison and fines of 100, ten and seven million euros.
In the order that ended the investigation in May 2021, Court number 5 of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria estimated at 450 million euros the income that the Kokorev would have obtained from selling to Equatorial Guinea “ships, combat helicopters, armored vehicles, military corvettes, patrol boats, frigates, fighter jets, bombers and dual-use military weapons.”
For the investigator, there were indications to take the case of the judgment that the Kokorev and their collaborators earned 100 million “inflating the costs” of that material, with the collaboration of two advisors and three relatives of Obiang in charge of the Armed Forces or the Guinean Government (a son-in-law, a cousin and a nephew), of which she said in that order that they received commissions from the defendants.
To date, businessman Vladimir Kokorev has always denied that neither he, nor his wife Yulia Maleeva, nor his son Igor Kokorev have bribed or paid commissions to relatives and advisors of the president of Equatorial Guinea to facilitate the sale of weapons to that country.
The family assures that trade relations with Equatorial Guinea were established by Vladimir Kokorev, without the participation of his wife or son; they were not illegal and consisted of the supply of “ships for the transport of goods and people, as well as helicopters, patrol boats and other goods.”
International
Looting Spreads in Venezuela’s Hardest-Hit Areas After Deadly Earthquakes
Not even the wires were left behind at a small grocery store. Before the ground had even stopped shaking, looting and theft began in the areas hardest hit by the double earthquake that struck Venezuela.
Reports of robberies have multiplied in the coastal state of La Guaira, located near Caracas and now transformed into a landscape of collapsed buildings and debris.
Videos circulating on social media show groups of people removing boxes of household appliances from a damaged store. Other images show similar boxes being carried on top of vehicles and motorcycles.
Social media platforms have also been filled with accusations against police officers and military personnel who allegedly stole from homes and even from victims who died during the disaster.
A branch of a major pharmacy chain was looted, along with supermarkets and other businesses. Some residents have described the situation as “disaster tourism,” while others say the looting reflects hunger and desperation among people who lost everything in a country already facing a prolonged economic crisis.
“Is it fair that our own people turn against our own people?” said María Esther Bernal, 71, who rented commercial spaces to Chinese merchants, all of which were looted. “They left nothing behind, not even the wallpaper. They even took the cables,” she said.
“Next door, a man died. He was Chinese. People walked over his body while they looted the place. It was a supermarket,” she added.
An AFP journalist witnessed looting in La Guaira since Thursday, following the earthquakes.
Jenifer Mayora, 34, defended some of the actions, saying that “the things people took were because the owners of the stores allowed us to take them.”
However, she criticized the limited response from authorities. “I have been waiting for a mattress so my children can sleep,” she said.
Residents have expressed anger over what they describe as a slow and insufficient response from authorities after the double earthquake, which has left around 1,450 people dead and tens of thousands missing.
Communities are demanding not only faster rescue operations in La Guaira, but also stronger security measures and urgent assistance with food, water, and medicine.
International
UN warns Venezuela earthquakes could affect up to 6.76 million people
Up to 6.76 million people could be affected by the devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24, according to an assessment released by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a United Nations agency.
The organization said the projections are based on available population data and damage assessments, and include up to two million people living in Caracas, the country’s capital.
The estimates highlight the potentially massive humanitarian impact of the disaster, the IOM warned.
Entire buildings collapsed in La Guaira, a coastal area north of Caracas, following the powerful twin earthquakes that reached magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 on Wednesday.
The national death toll has risen to 920, while rescue teams continue searching for people trapped beneath the rubble in coastal regions and other affected areas.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told AFP on Friday that more than 50,000 people were reported missing.
The IOM also revealed that it worked with Microsoft’s artificial intelligence laboratory on an initial satellite mapping analysis, which showed that 31.5% of buildings in the town of Catia La Mar had suffered damage.
Authorities and international rescue teams continue operations as Venezuela faces one of its largest humanitarian emergencies in recent years.
International
United Nations Coordinates Relief Efforts as Venezuela Death Toll Rises After Twin Quakes
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Thursday expressed his condolences to the people of Venezuela following the two devastating earthquakes that struck the country and highlighted the ongoing coordination between UN humanitarian teams and interim President Delcy Rodríguez.
Speaking during the UN’s daily press briefing, spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said Guterres was deeply saddened by the loss of life and widespread destruction caused by the disaster.
“The Secretary-General is deeply distressed by the loss of life and the widespread devastation caused by the earthquakes that struck Venezuela yesterday. He extends his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured,” Dujarric stated.
Venezuela was struck on Wednesday by two powerful earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude. According to official figures, the disaster has left at least 164 people dead and 971 others injured.
Dujarric noted that preliminary reports indicate significant damage across several states, including the capital, Caracas. Numerous casualties have been reported, while other individuals remain trapped beneath collapsed structures or are still missing.
“Critical infrastructure has been damaged and essential services have been disrupted,” the spokesperson said.
The United Nations confirmed that its humanitarian team remains in close contact with interim President Delcy Rodríguez and other relevant authorities as emergency operations continue.
To support relief efforts, the UN has established a coordination center in Caracas and is assisting local authorities to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches affected communities as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Guterres also welcomed the expressions of solidarity and offers of assistance from countries around the world that responded following news of the disaster, underscoring the importance of international cooperation in addressing the humanitarian emergency.
Looting Spreads in Venezuela’s Hardest-Hit Areas After Deadly Earthquakes
UN warns Venezuela earthquakes could affect up to 6.76 million people
United Nations Coordinates Relief Efforts as Venezuela Death Toll Rises After Twin Quakes
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