Six American oil executives held for three years in Venezuela were found guilty of corruption charges by a judge on Thursday.
Alirio Rafael Zambrano, brother to two of the men, said they were "undeniably innocent" and victims of "judicial terrorism." No evidence in the case supports a guilty conviction, he said. Their arrest launched a purge by President Nicolás Maduro's government of PDVSA and at a time when relations between Caracas and Washington were crumbling as Venezuela plummeted into economic and social crisis.
"I'm now reaching an intersection where if justice is done, I will be able to rebuild my life and try to compensate my family for all the lost moments," he added. "The light is intense -- the hope is great -- give me freedom." The others convicted are Gustavo Cárdenas, Jorge Toledo, brothers Jose Luis Zambrano and Alirio Zambrano, all now U.S. citizens. Jose Pereira, a permanent resident, received the longest sentence.
News media and rights groups were denied access to the hearings. There was no response to a letter addressed to Judge Lorena Cornielles seeking permission for The Associated Press to observe. "There's nothing that refers to Tomeu in any way -- directly or indirectly," the lawyer said. "This is the story of a good guy being held against his will for all the wrong reasons."
"I think the Venezuelans have been straight with me, but more progress needs to be made," Richardson said before the verdict. "My hope is to have something positive by Christmas."
First good news in a long time.
thank you very much for your work
Ireland Ireland Latest News, Ireland Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
What it's like inside a Venezuela hospital with no running water or medicine - Business InsiderWe went inside a public hospital in Venezuela where there's no running water and cancer patients have to provide their own medicine US Sanctions do that! StopTheCruelty
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
Inside the Amex virtual mentorship program helping low-income students - Business InsiderBusiness Insider tells the global tech, finance, markets, media, healthcare, and strategy stories you want to know. Great initiative!!!
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
Inside high-end custom pianos with Steinway & Sons CEO, Lenny Kravitz - Business InsiderInside the highest end of high-end pianos, with classic brand Steinway & Sons and its newest collaborator, Lenny Kravitz wow
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
Webinar: Inside private-equity recruiting at Carlyle, Apollo, Bain - Business InsiderJoin us on Thursday, December 3, at 1 p.m. ET, as Business Insider's Wall Street reporter reedalexander moderates a panel featuring four experienced recruiters from top private-equity firms. They'll share tips on how to make it in the industry and more.
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
Inside the NCAA's rules for student-athletes monetizing their brand - Business InsiderNCAA student-athletes are months away from being able to profit off their brand. Here are all the ways businesses, agents, and advertisers can — and can't — work with them. thank you very much for your work
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
'People are seriously pissed': Inside Google firing a top AI ethicist - Business InsiderInside Google's firing of a top AI researcher, and the academic paper that started the battle: 'People are seriously pissed' nice I love it when these folks find out they’re working for a publicly traded company and not some university/etc — welcome to the real world of actions and consequences. Neuralink will be in next job
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »