Ex-Mozambique finance minister pleads not guilty in New York over debt scandal

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A former Mozambique finance minister pleaded not guilty on Thursday to U.S. criminal charges over his alleged involvement in a fraud involving $2 billion in loans to three state-owned companies.

Chang had beenon Wednesday from South Africa, where he was arrested in December 2018 on U.S. charges of conspiring to commit wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering.

The so-called "tuna bonds" case stems from financing extended to the three state companies by Credit Suisse and Russian bank VTB for projects to develop Mozambique's fishing industry and improve maritime security between 2013 and 2016. Federal prosecutors said Chang secretly had Mozambique's government guarantee the loans in exchange for bribes, and that the three companies were really "fronts" for Chang and other defendants to enrich themselves. The scheme misled U.S. investors about Mozambique's creditworthiness, prosecutors said.

 

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