Miami man pleads guilty to helping Venezuela skirt sanctions

By JOSHUA GOODMAN
Associated Press

MIAMI (AP) — A Miami businessman has pleaded guilty to receiving payments from Venezuela’s government and servicing the country’s fleet of Russian fighter jets in violation of U.S. sanctions. A visibly nervous Jorge Nobrega admitted in federal court Tuesday that he was paid the equivalent of around $3.5 million by state-run oil giant PDVSA into an account he opened at a bank in Portugal. The case against the Venezuelan-American dual national stands out from other criminal investigations focused on the South American country because it’s one of the first to look into the dealings of Venezuela’s military, a key plank of support for President Nicolás Maduro.