Former Venezuelan national treasurer gets 15-year federal prison sentence

April 19 (UPI) -- Venezuela's former national treasurer and her husband were each sentenced to 15-year federal prison sentences, according to court documents released Wednesday.

A federal judge in Florida sentenced Claudia Díaz Guillen, 49, and her husband, Adrian Velásquez Figueroa, 43, for their roles in a multibillion-dollar bribery and money laundering scheme.

Velásquez was the former head of security for former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. Díaz served as the national treasurer under Chavez.

The couple accepted $136 million in bribes from Venezuelan billionaire Raúl Gorrin Belisario, a former owner of Caracas-based cable network Globovision. Belisario is currently a fugitive in Venezuela.

Prosecutors contend Gorrin paid the bribes in return for the ability to purchase bonds from the Venezuela National Treasury at a favorable exchange rate.

The under-the-table deal equated to hundreds of millions of dollars in profits, the Justice Department said Wednesday. All three co-conspirators benefited heavily from the scheme involving Swiss bank accounts and international wire transfers, officials said.

The trio reportedly used the profits to buy numerous private jets and yachts. Díaz Diaz and Velásquez also started a high-end fashion line in South Florida.

Díaz and Velásquez were convicted of money laundering offenses last December, following a trial. Gorrin is charged as a co-conspirator but remains a fugitive in Venezuela.

In addition to the prison sentence, both Díaz and Velásquez received a $136 million forfeiture penalty and $75,000 fines payable to the federal government.

"As a result of the Department of Justice's relentless efforts, the defendants will serve lengthy prison terms for their roles in a massive bribery and money laundering scheme in which Díaz abused her role as the Venezuelan national treasurer," Justice Department Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite, Jr. said in a statement.

Justice Department attorney Paul Hayden told U.S. District Judge William Dimitrouleas, prosecutors believe the couple is still hiding $6 million in assets.

"The sentences imposed against former Venezuelan national treasurer Díaz and her husband send a clear message: The United States will not tolerate its financial systems being used as personal money laundering tools by corrupt foreign officials," U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida said in a statement.