Bribery: US court sentences former Bolivian interior minister
A US federal court for the Southern District of Florida on Wednesday (4th) sentenced former Bolivian Interior Minister Arturo Murillo to seventy months in prison for conspiracy and money laundering.
This was announced by the US Department of Justice in a statement. Murillo pleaded guilty in October to receiving at least US$532,000 in bribes from a Florida-based company to help the company secure a lucrative contract with the Bolivian Defense Ministry (tear gas).
Another former Bolivian official and three Americans were convicted in the United States last June after also pleading guilty to involvement in the same scheme, the ministry said.
Former Senator Murillo served as Interior Minister from 2019 to 2020 under President Jeanine Áñez‘s interim government, which took power after the political unrest that led to President Evo Morales’ resignation and departure from the country.
Murillo fled after Morales’ party returned to power in 2020 and was arrested in Florida in May 2021. The Bolivian government has requested Murillo’s extradition, where he faces a series of criminal charges.
Bolivian Attorney General Wilfredo Chavez reiterated in a press conference that Murillo’s conviction would advance the extradition process and that the government would take legal action to obtain US$532,000 “as a victim” of Murillo’s crimes.
With information from latinapress
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