Former Vitol Group oil trader Javier Aguilar faces up to 40 years in prison and fines of more than $7.1 million on two U.S. bribery counts after pleading guilty in federal court.
Aguilar, 50, had already been convicted in February in Brooklyn, New York, of orchestrating a scheme to bribe Mexican and Ecuadorian officials, but pleaded guilty Wednesday to a second charge, consolidating the two cases, according to a statement from federal prosecutors. statementThe move allows U.S. District Judge Eric Vitaliano to impose sentences on both counts.
In both cases (the second was originally filed in Texas), Aguilar was charged with conspiracy, foreign bribery and money laundering. In Brooklyn, prosecutors alleged that he handed out cash in hotels, airports and even parking lots as part of a scheme to win $500 million in business.
“With today’s guilty plea, the defendants admitted to their role in widespread corruption of global commodities markets and in ignoring the laws and regulations that apply to all in order to unfairly line the pockets of a few,” Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.
The five-count indictment in Texas charges that Aguilar, a former manager and oil trader, conspired to bribe Mexican officials who worked for PEMEX Procurement International.
Aguilar’s lawyer, Irene Jaroslav, said the plea agreement resolves all pending charges against her client.
“Mr Aguilar accepts responsibility for his role at Vitol and I am confident that Judge Vitaliano will deliver a fair sentence,” Jaroslaw said in a statement.
Vitol, the world’s largest independent oil trader, agreed to a $160 million settlement with the Justice Department in 2020 over allegations that it paid bribes in three countries. Aguilar was indicted in 2020 on charges of orchestrating a five-year bribery and money laundering scheme while working for a Vitol subsidiary in Houston.
The Texas case is U.S. v. Aguilar, 23-cr-00335, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas (Houston).
