The scales of justice have tipped against Carlos Ramon Polit Faggioni, the former comptroller general of Ecuador, finding him guilty in a Miami federal court for his involvement in a $10M bribery and money laundering operation. According to court documents, between 2010 and 2015, the 73-year-old former official engaged in illegal activities with Odebrecht S.A., a Brazil-based construction giant.
Evidence presented at trial revealed that Polit, instead of guarding against corruption, solicited and received bribes from Odebrecht to soften penalties and negate fines on the company's projects in Ecuador. In an incident around 2015, he caught a bribe from an Ecuadorian business figure for assistance in securing contracts with a state-owned insurance company. U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe commented on the case, "This verdict is a reminder of our office's firm commitment to investigating, and prosecuting corrupt foreign officials who bring their criminally obtained funds to South Florida to buy real estate," as per the release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Political corruption breaches the trust placed by the public in their leaders, and Polit's misuse of his office exemplifies such a breach. The funds he obtained through bribery were later funneled through Florida business entities, some registered under unsuspecting associates' names. Political's deep entanglement in money laundering involved real estate transactions in Florida, using the dirty money to buy and renovate properties.
Nicole M. Argentieri, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, expressed the U.S. Justice Department's determination, "The Criminal Division is committed to ensuring that the United States is not a safe haven for the illicit funds of corrupt officials." Polit was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, three counts of concealment money laundering, and two counts of engaging in transactions with criminally derived property. He's potentially facing a maximum sentence of 20 years for each money laundering charge, and 10 years for each property transaction charge.
The investigation received assistance from multiple international bodies, including law enforcement in Ecuador, Brazil, Panama, and Curacao. Odebrecht had previously submitted a guilty plea in 2016 in New York for bribing officials in multiple countries, supporting the vast web of corruption involving Polit.
