When Ysmel Romer Serrano Flórez held the position of Executive Vice President of Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA), a group of companies allegedly served as vehicles through which the senior official, in collusion with other high-ranking company executives and external agents, supposedly carried out numerous irregular activities.

These companies were Helsinge, Trafigura, and Citizen, which were identified in a lawsuit filed in a United States court as responsible for a massive fraud against the state-owned company. The arrival of Major General Manuel Quevedo at the Venezuelan oil company was decisive in bringing about these changes.

Unfortunately for Venezuela and its most important company, Quevedo’s appointment did nothing to correct the irregularities. By ordering Serrano’s departure, the new head of the Venezuelan state oil company, far from promoting corrective measures, allegedly aggravated the situation. According to various accusations and complaints, the newly contracted companies belonging to the Vitol Group possessed a structure that enabled the misappropriation of billions of dollars from Venezuela’s principal industry.

Internal PDVSA sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, reported that the Vitol Group’s entry into the business intensified corruption. Essentially, one corrupt actor was replaced by another, with the alleged participants including not only representatives of the ruling government but also prominent figures from the Venezuelan opposition, as will be discussed later.

According to our sources, a decisive factor in Serrano’s departure was Citizen’s alleged outstanding debt of USD 60 million to PDVSA, which reportedly involved a corruption scheme that has not yet been made public.

With Ysmel Serrano out of PDVSA, Manuel Quevedo allegedly had a clear path to bring his own working “team” into the company. These were individuals who had accompanied him during his tenure as head of the Gran Misión Vivienda Venezuela housing program.

Among them was Fernando Manuel de Quintal Rodríguez, who replaced Serrano as Vice President of Commerce and Supply [1] and subsequently moved into Finance.

Meanwhile, Javier José López Espinoza was placed in charge of PDVSA TV and appointed Products Manager, according to the source. Luis Vergara, Fernando de Quintal’s brother-in-law, was appointed Crude Oil Manager.

At the same time, Vitol, Novum, BB Energy, MS International, and Elemento began operating with PDVSA as replacements for Helsinge, Trafigura, and Citizen.

Vitol managed to circumvent the ban imposed on it by PDVSA due to irregularities by partnering with companies belonging to Francisco Morillo and Leonardo Baquero, which allegedly served as fronts.

Sources report that Fernando Manuel de Quintal Rodríguez ensured that only Novum, BB Energy, MS International, and Elemento were invited to participate in bidding processes, which had effectively become selective invitations.

These companies allegedly received key figures from PDVSA officials appointed by Quintal Rodríguez, enabling them to win tenders on behalf of Vitol. Vitol ultimately decided which of the four companies would be favored on each occasion.

In short, this was allegedly a sham bidding process in which contracts were awarded to these companies on a rotating basis.

This arrangement facilitated exorbitant profit margins because of the absence of competition. Any company wishing to participate in the purchase or sale of products involving Venezuela was forced to operate through these four firms.

Given PDVSA’s currently limited payment capacity, our sources report that Vitol’s companies accept a “barter” arrangement. Instead of receiving payment in dollars, they receive naphtha, fuel oil, and certain other products at prices outside market rates, generating enormous profits.

This would explain PDVSA’s inexplicable and excessive purchases of gasoline and diesel.

We learned that the alleged corruption scheme involving Vitol and PDVSA also includes purchasing crude oil and petroleum products when oil market prices are rising.

At such times, Vitol’s companies allegedly coordinate with officials of the state-owned company to arrange payment of provisional invoices within the first seven days after shipment, repeating the same amount on the final invoice issued 30 days after the transaction.

The resulting surplus is allegedly distributed among Vitol, its companies, and the oil company officials involved in the negotiations.

Vitol: A Long History of Allegations

The Vitol Group is a global energy and commodities trading company founded by Henk Viëtor and Jacques Detiger in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in 1966.

According to its website [2], Vitol distributes energy in various countries, “trading more than seven million barrels of crude oil and products per day and delivering energy products to countries around the world. Our customers include national oil companies, multinationals, leading industrial and chemical companies, and the world’s largest airlines. We deliver the products they need on time and to specification by sourcing and managing the movement of energy through the relevant infrastructure.”

The group has 40 offices worldwide, with its main operations in Bahrain, Geneva, Houston, London, Rotterdam, and Singapore.

The BN Américas website [3] states that this multinational energy and commodities company is headquartered in Switzerland and is Dutch-owned.

Through its subsidiaries, it provides trading, logistics and distribution, refining, shipping, terminal and storage, exploration and production, and power generation services.

The website adds that the company’s customers include oil companies, multinationals, industrial and chemical companies, and airlines.

Its address is Boulevard du Pont d’Arve 28, Geneva, Switzerland.

Telephone: +41 22 322 1111.
Fax: +41 22 781 6611.
Email: dbf@vitol.com.

The business group has been involved in numerous controversies.

For example, in 2012, it admitted that one of its Bahrain-based subsidiaries had purchased fuel oil of Iranian origin, circumventing international restrictions.

It also supplied gasoline to Libyan rebels in exchange for premium crude oil, securing lucrative contracts that ensured its presence in the emerging market following the North African country’s changing political landscape [4].

Alongside Trafigura and Glencore, Vitol was linked to corruption allegations involving Brazil’s state-owned oil company Petrobras. The companies were accused of paying approximately USD 31 million in bribes to officials of the oil company as part of Operation Lava Jato [5].

In Switzerland, prosecutors investigated the company for alleged corruption involving senior officials in Nigeria following revelations from the so-called Paradise Papers.

An article published by El Economista reported that senior company executives were allegedly involved in tax evasion, suspected corruption, and conflicts of interest.

“The corruption cases revolve around alleged contracts with Nigerian businessman Kola Aluko, who reportedly paid bribes to former Nigerian Energy Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke in exchange for favorable agreements involving the country’s commodities” [6].

Similarly, the PDVSA US Litigation Trust, established by the American law firm Boies Schiller Flexner at the request of Petróleos de Venezuela, filed a lawsuit in a federal court in Miami against several companies and individuals, including Vitol.

The case concerned an alleged corruption network responsible for defrauding the state-owned oil company of billions of dollars.

Before this lawsuit, Venezuelan prosecutors had initiated an investigation within the oil company that resulted in the imprisonment and indictment of dozens of PDVSA employees [7].

Despite the existence of this lawsuit, PDVSA and Vitol allegedly continued maintaining commercial and contractual relationships through the aforementioned companies associated with Vitol.

About Novum Energy

Novum Energy [8] is a physical oil supply and trading company operating in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Its objective is to supply refined petroleum products, including gasoline, distillates, and fuel oil, to refineries, power plants, storage terminals, retail stations, and other facilities.

Bloomberg [9] states that Novum Energy Trading Corp. “supplies petroleum and refined petroleum products in Latin America and the Caribbean. Novum Energy Trading Corp. was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Road Town, British Virgin Islands.”

No information is available regarding the composition of the company’s board of directors.

The website lists its headquarters as Trident Chambers, PO Box 146, Road Town, British Virgin Islands.

Meanwhile, Sunbiz [10] reports that Novum Energy Trading Corp. was registered in Florida under number F11000002542 and FEI/EIN 98-0706265 on June 15, 2011.

Its current status is inactive, having been revoked following its annual report.

Its headquarters were located at 2600 S. Douglas Road, Suite 805, Coral Gables, FL 33134, which was also listed as its mailing address.

Its registered agent was López, Padial & Levi LLC, located at the same address.

Alfredo Vilas was listed as an executive, using the same address provided by the company.

An Argentine national named Maximiliano Poveda, a senior Novum executive who previously served as Trafigura’s global head trader for its LPG business, allegedly appeared in many of the recordings presented in the Miami court proceedings.

B.B. Energy: A Long History of Alleged Irregularities

B.B. Energy (BBE) is an independent company engaged in global energy trading, with experience in operations, freight, logistics, storage, refining, and financing.

The company began operating in Lebanon in 1937, initially limiting its activities to trading grain and asphalt.

In 1963, it entered the Lebanese oil industry, subsequently expanding into the Black Sea region, Europe, Asia, and the United States. It currently conducts commercial activities across all five continents.

According to the company’s website [11], it handles annual trading volumes exceeding 20 million metric tons of crude oil and petroleum products, making BB Energy one of the most active traders of gasoil, gasoline, bitumen, and fuel oil in the Mediterranean.

In the United States, it operates in Texas under the name BB Energy USA LLC.

According to Bloomberg [12], its registered address is:

C/O The Corporation Trust Company, Corporation Trust Center, 1209 Orange Street, Wilmington, DE 19801.

The website states that BB Energy USA LLC “was established to enhance U.S. sourcing capabilities, develop domestic trading activities in North America, and increase our trading flows to South America.”

The company attracted significant attention following revelations from the Panama Papers [13], which described how the Cuban government allegedly used offshore companies to circumvent the economic embargo imposed by the United States.

The journalistic investigation revealed an arrangement for exporting Russian oil to Latin America through BB Energy, a company controlled by the Bassatne family.

The family controls BB Energy Trading Ltd, BB Energy Management S.A., BB Energy Holdings NV, B.B. Energy B.V., BB Energy (Asia) Pte Ltd, BB Energy (Gulf) DMCC, and BB Holding S.A.L.

Helsinge: The Small Company Behind the Alleged Fraud

Helsinge Inc. specializes in electricity, oil and gas, energy, utilities, and waste treatment.

According to ZoomInfo, the company is headquartered at 1221 Brickell Avenue, Suite 900, Miami, Florida 33131, United States.

It reportedly generates approximately USD 3.6 million in revenue and employs 18 people [14].

However, when accessing the company registration information through Sunbiz [15], the company appears under the name Horbering Co., registered in Florida on October 22, 2009, under number P09000087357.

Its current status is inactive, having been administratively dissolved on September 24, 2010, according to its annual report.

The address listed in the Florida registry was 1221 Brickell Avenue, Suite 900, Miami, FL 33131, which was also its mailing address.

Its registered agent was Daniel Lutz, and the company’s president was Pedro García.

Lutz also served as an executive, with all individuals using the company’s address.

The name change from Helsinge Inc. to Horbering Co. took place on November 3, 2009 [16].

The company’s name emerged in March 2018 when a civil lawsuit filed in a Miami federal court by the PDVSA US Litigation Trust became public.

The trust had been created by the New York law firm Boies Schiller Flexner LLP at PDVSA’s request to pursue legal action against more than 40 individuals and legal entities for alleged corruption involving the state-owned oil company.

The complaint alleged that the defendants used intimidation and bribery to conceal the corruption scheme for more than 14 years.

An investigation conducted by lawyers and investigators in the United States, Venezuela, and Europe reportedly uncovered the alleged criminal activities of the defendants, who were said to have implemented their scheme beginning in 2004, enabling them to obtain billions of dollars at PDVSA’s expense.

The principal defendants were two former contractors of the Venezuelan state-owned company, Francisco Morillo and Leonardo Baquero, who allegedly formed alliances with companies and individuals to carry out the fraud.

Nineteen charges were brought against the following defendants:

Lukoil Pan American LLC, Lukoil Petroleum LTD, Colonial Oil Industries, Colonial Group INC, Glencore LTD, Glencore International A.G., Glencore Energy U.K., Masefiel A.G., Trafigura A.G., Trafigura Trading LLC, Trafigura Beheer B.V., Vitol Energy (Bermuda), Vitol S.A., Vitol INC, Francisco Morillo, Leonardo Baquero, Daniel Lutz, Luis Liendo, John Ryan, María Fernanda Rodríguez, Helsinge Holding LLC, Helsinge INC, Helsinge LTD, Saint-Helier, Waltrop Consultant C.A., Godelheim INC, Hornberg INC, Societe Doberam N, S.A., Scorte Hedisson S.A., Scorte Hellin S.A., Glencore de Venezuela C.A., Jehu Holding INC, Andrew Summers, Maximiliano Poveda, José La Rocca, Luis Álvarez, Gustavo Gabaldón, Sergio de la Vega, Antonio Maarraoui, Campo Elías Páez, Paul Rosado, BAC Florida Bank, EFG International A.G., and Blue International Bank.

An article published by Venezuela al Día [17] states that the alleged conspiracy began in May 2001, when defendants Morillo and Baquero established a Venezuelan company called Waltrop Consultant.

The company was intended to provide intelligence services to the energy market, particularly PDVSA.

Subsequently, in 2004, Morillo and Baquero established Helsinge Inc. in Panama, with branches in Miami, Geneva, and the British island of Jersey.

This company allegedly served as a channel through which some of PDVSA’s main customers and suppliers obtained privileged information about the Venezuelan oil company’s tenders for crude oil exports and purchases of products used in refining heavy crude oil.

Morillo and Baquero hired a PDVSA technology expert, Luis Liendo, known as “The Nerd,” who was allegedly responsible for cloning PDVSA’s server onto computers belonging to the defendants in Miami.

This procedure allegedly gave contractors and their customers real-time access to tender information before other competitors could obtain it.

According to the Infodio website, a Geneva court rejected Helsinge’s arguments challenging PDVSA’s legitimacy as an injured party in the alleged conspiracy.

Helsinge argued that PDVSA was following the same approach established in the civil case initiated in Florida by the PDVSA US Litigation Trust.

The article states that Helsinge appeared not to recognize that PDVSA had directly filed a criminal complaint as an injured party and had instructed the PDVSA US Litigation Trust to act on its behalf in the civil proceedings.

On that basis, the judge dismissed Helsinge’s claim [18].

A Bloomberg article [19] adds that Helsinge also sold information to competing companies so they could submit winning bids.

According to a source cited in the report, the initial fee was USD 200,000 per 500,000 barrels, approximately ten times the prevailing brokerage commission.

Through our sources, we learned that Morillo and Baquero allegedly bribed Miguel Rodríguez Torres while he was serving as Minister of the Interior.

The alleged purpose was for Rodríguez Torres to use the technological infrastructure at his disposal to hack PDVSA’s servers and provide them with key information for oil trading.

Informants also claim that Francisco Morillo and Leonardo Baquero maintained a business partnership with Francisco D’Agostino and Oswaldo Cisneros, whose activities and strategies allegedly resulted in PDVSA awarding them the Petro Delta oil field.

In this regard, journalist Casto Ocando reported on several lawsuits filed in federal courts in the United States, as well as in England and Switzerland, in which the aforementioned individuals featured prominently.

The lawsuits “involve Francisco D’Agostino, Alessandro Bazzoni, and Oswaldo Cisneros, partners in various oil projects in Venezuela. They also involve several companies established in Venezuela and the United States and mention half a dozen individuals who participated in alleged irregularities.”

The article adds:

“At least four legal proceedings were initiated over the past three weeks by Chemplast Steel Industries Metals Ltd and Southern Procurement Services (SPS) in courts in New York, Miami, London, and Geneva against Elemento Ltd, registered in England and headquartered in London and the island of Malta; and Castleton Commodities International (CCI), headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.

The legal actions also include Elemento Ltd partners Alessandro Bazzoni, Francisco D’Agostino, and Carlos Galindo; and Oswaldo Cisneros, who is associated with D’Agostino and Bazzoni in the Venezuelan joint venture Petrodelta S.A. and the company DP Delta Finance B.V.” [20].

SPS and Chemplast Against Elemento

Elemento LTD is an energy trading company that is or was owned by Francisco D’Agostino, Oswaldo Cisneros, and Alessandro Bazzoni.

Its contracts with PDVSA are reportedly under investigation in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia due to alleged irregularities.

According to Infospectrum [21], the company was registered in Malta in October 2015.

It was originally named CT Energia Ltd, changing its name to Elemento Ltd on July 25, 2016.

The company’s address is listed as 85 St. John Street, VLT 1165, Valletta, Malta.

Telephone: +44 207 952 6975.

On its website, Elemento describes itself as “a physical commodities distribution and trading company that imports, stores, wholesales, transports, and distributes petroleum products” [22].

A report published by Dólar Today [23] stated that the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia was investigating the company for alleged contractual irregularities.

“The federal court ordered Castleton Commodities International LLC (CCI), based in West Virginia, to produce communications and documents received and exchanged, including emails, between its executives and the shareholders of the energy trading company Elemento.

The lawsuit was filed by SPS Ltd and Chemplast Steel Industries Metals Ltd (Chemplast).

The request for a subpoena for documents and communications, as well as a deposition, was approved by the federal court for the Southern District of West Virginia on August 24 [2018], against CCI.

The proceedings, scheduled to take place on September 13 in Charleston, West Virginia, were appealed by CCI. The court has not yet issued a decision on the appeal.”

According to the news report, the lawsuit was filed by SPS Ltd and Chemplast Steel Industries Metals Ltd (Chemplast) to support arbitration proceedings the companies were pursuing against Elemento in Switzerland.

The article explains:

“The plaintiffs entered into an agreement for the sale of crude oil and petroleum products with West Virginia-based CCI in October 2017, which acted as the exclusive representative in Venezuela of the trading company Elemento.

The transaction was carried out, and the plaintiffs agreed to supply crude oil to be delivered to ‘a specific port in the United States.’

Elemento and CCI allegedly diverted certain shipments of Venezuelan oil supplied by SPS and Chemplast and subsequently submitted forged documents to PDVSA to conceal the destination of the shipments, making it appear that the deliveries had been made to the appropriate contractual destination.

The plaintiffs believe that Elemento and CCI benefited ‘improperly’ from these diversion operations involving crude oil belonging to the Venezuelan state-owned company.

‘Elemento never paid for the crude oil it was diverting, valued at more than $7.4 million,’ the plaintiffs alleged.”

However, Southern Procurement Services Ltd. (SPS) and Chemplast Steel Industries Metals Ltd., which appeared to have been defrauded by Elemento, also have a history of alleged corrupt practices.

This is reflected in an Infodio article [24] reporting on an agreement signed on September 11, 2017, between Chemplast—described in the report as a shell company registered in Nevis and controlled by Esmeralda del Carmen da Silva Izquierdo—and PDVSA.

Under the agreement, PDVSA committed 28 million barrels of oil through a 36-month contract valued at approximately USD 1.93 billion at the time of publication.

Chemplast would market increased production from the Urdaneta Lago oil field.

Meanwhile, SPS signed a services contract with the Military Corporation of Mining, Oil and Gas Industries (Camimpeg) on May 5, 2017.

Under this contract, SPS was required to increase production in the designated field from 11,630 barrels per day in September 2017 to 38,460 barrels per day by February 2020.

Any additional production obtained by SPS during this period would be marketed by Chemplast.

Returning to Elemento LTD, the previously cited article by Casto Ocando notes that this was not the first time the company and its shareholders had been involved in lawsuits before United States federal courts.

“In early 2017, Elemento Ltd was sued in the federal court for the Southern District of Texas over alleged fraudulent transactions.

The plaintiff, Chemoil Latin America Inc., a Panama-based energy company, argued that Elemento Ltd and its principal shareholder, Alessandro Bazzoni, had incurred a debt of $3.49 million for purchases of naphtha shipments supplied by Chemoil and Petroperú, which they never paid.”

Another lawsuit against the company and its subsidiaries for alleged fraud was heard in the Southern District Court of New York in November 2015.

The lawsuit was filed by Centauro Liquid Opportunities Master Fund L.P., a New York-based investment firm, against Cinque Terre Financial Group, Elemento Ltd’s predecessor, over an alleged fraud exceeding $21 million.

Trafigura: Another Company in the Alleged Scheme

Trafigura describes itself on its website [25] as “one of the world’s leading independent commodity trading and logistics companies.”

According to Bloomberg [26], Trafigura Group Pte. Ltd. is engaged in the independent trading of oil and petroleum products, including crude oil, gasoline, fuel oil, middle distillates, naphtha, liquefied petroleum gas, liquefied natural gas, biodiesel, and condensates.

It also trades metals and minerals, including iron ore, concentrates, coal, and refined metals such as copper cathodes, blister copper, copper wire rods, aluminum, lead, zinc, nickel, and precious metals.

The company also provides logistics solutions, including issuing voyage orders, preparing stowage plans, negotiating with port agents, handling demurrage claims involving wet, gas, and dry cargo, and providing asset management services.

Its flagship assets include Impala Callao in Peru, Impala Manzanillo in Mexico, and Impala Huelva in Spain, which produces lead, zinc, and copper concentrates, as well as the MATSA copper mine in Spain.

The company serves oil producers, refineries, mining companies, and smelters.

Founded in 1993, it is headquartered in Singapore.

Trafigura Group Pte. Ltd. is a subsidiary of Trafigura Beheer B.V.

Bloomberg also identifies the following key executives of Trafigura Group Pte. Limited:

• Jeremy Weir, Executive Chairman and CEO.

• Christophe Salmon, Chief Financial Officer.

• Mike Wainwright, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director.

• Nicolas Konialidis, CEO of Impala Terminals.

• Chin Hwee Tan, CFA, CEO for Asia-Pacific.

According to the website, the company employs 4,316 people and has its headquarters at:

Level 29, Ocean Financial Centre, 10 Collyer Quay, Singapore 04931.

Telephone: +65 6319 2960.

Trafigura is among the companies sued by the PDVSA US Litigation Trust, which filed a complaint in March 2018 before the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

The complaint described an extensive alleged corruption network in which two Venezuelan consultants bribed oil company executives and conspired with international oil brokers to obtain sales and supply contracts from the state-owned company [27].

The Miami court documents mention Argentine national José Larocca [28], a member of Trafigura’s Management Board and head of its Oil and Petroleum Products Trading Division.

Our sources describe him as a member of a group they call “The Briefcase Man,” whose allegedly fraudulent dealings and negotiations reportedly enabled its members to accumulate substantial fortunes.

Regarding Larocca and other associates, Gustavo Coronel wrote on his website, “Las armas del Coronel,” that they belonged to a “legion” consisting of “Venezuelan millionaires and billionaires who plundered PDVSA, the banking sector, and Venezuelan government agencies and ministries” [29].

The Key Figures

According to the Dateas website, Ysmel Romer Serrano Flórez was born on August 25, 1978, holds Venezuelan identity card number V-13.148.780, and is registered in Petare parish, Sucre municipality, Miranda state [30].

His individual account with the Venezuelan Social Security Institute indicates that he entered the system on October 1, 2003.

His current employment status is listed as unemployed, having left CVG Internacional C.A., employer registration number D28326773, on April 1, 2017.

His eligibility date is August 25, 2038. He has accumulated 610 weeks of contributions and reported total contributory wages of Bs. 12,307.02 [31].

He exercises his voting rights at the Luis Augusto Machado National Educational Institution, Castor Nieves Ríos parish, José Félix Rivas municipality, Aragua state.

The Poderopedia website [32] reports that Serrano Flórez served as Vice President of Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), with his appointment confirmed on May 3, 2018, in Official Gazette No. 41,389.

He was replaced in June 2018 by Miguel Quintana Castro [33].

He also served as President of the Bank Deposit Social Protection Fund (Fogade), having been appointed on May 16, 2016.

He was Secretary of Commerce and Economic Development of Aragua, President of CVG Internacional, and Director General within the National Integrated Customs and Tax Administration Service (Seniat).

Before becoming Vice President of the state-owned oil company, he served as Vice President of Commerce and Supply, the department responsible for distributing gasoline and diesel throughout the country.

He is a close associate of Tareck El Aissami, with whom he studied law at the University of Los Andes.

Together, they founded left-wing student movements and led the student union.

When El Aissami was elected governor of Aragua state, he appointed Serrano as Secretary of Economic Development and later as Secretary of Government.

For his part, Manuel Salvador Quevedo Fernández holds Venezuelan identity card number V-9.705.800.

He exercises his voting rights at the Simón Rodríguez Bolivarian Ecological School, El Valle parish, Libertador municipality, Capital District.

Quevedo Fernández is a Major General of the National Guard who was appointed President of PDVSA and Minister of Petroleum and Mining on November 26, 2017, following a “restructuring” of the oil industry ordered by President Nicolás Maduro.

According to Poderopedia, his appointment was confirmed on May 3, 2018, in Official Gazette No. 41,389.

He previously served as President of the Barrio Nuevo Barrio Tricolor and Gran Misión Vivienda programs.

“He also served as Minister of Housing and Habitat, appointed on August 18, 2015, and confirmed on March 15, 2016.

He was a Brigadier General and head of Regional Command No. 5, located in Greater Caracas.

He left that position in late May 2014 after overseeing operations to suppress protests that had taken place throughout the capital since February.

At the time, social media reports claimed that he had been replaced by Favio Zavarse after his son was among those detained at a protest camp established by students on the premises of the United Nations Development Programme” [34].

In an article published by Diario Las Américas, Carlos Julio Peñaloza reported that, according to his investigations, Manuel Quevedo was linked to a serious incident in 2000 while serving as a captain under General Marco Ferreira.

The incident occurred at Detachment 59 in La Guaira, where authorities discovered “half a ton of cocaine concealed in tuna cans.”

“The internal investigation established that a National Guard officer named Villarroel, who belonged to Captain Quevedo’s company, was allegedly implicated.

The investigation into Villarroel uncovered indications that the operation was allegedly protected by Captain Quevedo.

Faced with this situation, Ferreira requested that the National Guard Command ask the Prosecutor’s Office to open a preliminary investigation.

A few hours after submitting this request, he received a call from the National Guard Commander informing him that, by order of President Chávez, Quevedo had been transferred to serve as an aide to José Vicente Rangel.

Ferreira was subsequently removed from his position, and the investigation into Quevedo’s alleged involvement in the case was suspended” [35].

Quevedo’s tenure as head of PDVSA and the petroleum ministry was marked by a sustained decline in oil production.

The specialized publication Petroguía reported that, after twelve months in office, production had fallen by 22%, equivalent to “404,000 barrels per day in absolute terms, according to the official figures themselves.”

However, secondary sources monitoring the oil market estimated the decline at 36%, representing “a decrease of 663,000 barrels per day.”

Thus, while “the Venezuelan Ministry of Petroleum acknowledges production of 1,433,000 barrels per day at the end of October, international organizations indicate a level of 1.1 million barrels per day” [36].

Fernando Manuel de Quintal Rodríguez was born on October 6, 1985, holds Venezuelan identity card number V-16.888.364, and is registered in Los Teques parish, Guaicaipuro municipality, Miranda state [37].

His account with the Venezuelan Social Security Institute (IVSS) indicates that his eligibility date is October 6, 2045.

His current employment status is listed as unemployed, having left Construpatria S.A., employer registration number O71755362, on January 30, 2018.

He has accumulated 521 weeks of contributions and reported total contributory wages of Bs. 27.57 [38].

He exercises his voting rights at the Sagrado Corazón de Jesús School, Los Teques parish, Guaicaipuro municipality, Miranda state.