US authorities have charged two Ecuadorian citizens, John Luzuriaga Aguinaga and Jorge Cherrez Miño, for their involvement in a bribery and money laundering scheme related to Ecuador’s public police pension fund (ISSPOL). Authorities arrested Luzuriaga on February 26, while an arrest warrant has been issued against Cherrez, who may be in Mexico.
During 2014-20, Cherrez, an investment advisor, paid bribes worth over $2.6 million to ISSPOL officials to gain ISSPOL’s investment business. This bribe amount includes the $1,397,066 that Cherrez paid to Luzuriaga who is ISSPOL’s Risk Director and a member of ISSPOL’s Investment Committee. Meanwhile, Cherrez made profits of over $65 million from the scheme.
Cherrez received payments from the ISSPOL investment business in a US-based account. He used companies and bank accounts based in Florida to pay the bribes. Cherrez and Luzuriaga concealed the bribery scheme by laundering the illicit funds through Florida-based companies and bank accounts.
Source: US Department of Justice