By Luc Cohen
NEW YORK (Reuters) -A former Mozambique finance minister was convicted on Thursday on U.S. felony fees over his alleged involvement in a fraud involving $2 billion in loans to a few state-owned firms to develop the African nation’s fishing trade.
Jurors discovered Manuel Chang responsible of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit cash laundering within the “tuna bonds” case, following a three-week trial in federal court docket in Brooklyn, New York.
Chang plans to enchantment the decision, protection lawyer Adam Ford (NYSE:) advised reporters outdoors the courtroom.
Prosecutors mentioned shipbuilding agency Privinvest paid Chang $7 million in bribes in change for approving a Mozambique authorities assure for loans to a few state firms to develop the African nation’s fishing trade and enhance maritime safety.
The loans got here from Credit score Suisse and Russian financial institution VTB.
Chang acquired the funds in a Swiss checking account managed by a pal and had different Mozambican officers talk with Privinvest in regards to the payoffs in an try and cowl his tracks, prosecutors mentioned.
The tasks finally collapsed and the state-backed firms defaulted on their loans, leaving traders with hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in losses.
Donors such because the Worldwide Financial Fund quickly halted assist, triggering a foreign money collapse and monetary turmoil.
“Right now’s verdict is an inspiring victory for justice and the folks of Mozambique,” Breon Peace, the highest federal prosecutor in Brooklyn mentioned in a press release.
Peace known as Chang “a corrupt, high-ranking authorities official whose greed and self-interest bought out one of many poorest nations on this planet.”
Ford argued that his shopper accepted the Mozambique authorities assure as a result of the nation’s president needed him to, and mentioned there was no proof the $7 million was supposed for Chang.
“That cash by no means went to Minister Chang,” Ford mentioned in his closing argument on Monday.
Two Credit score Suisse bankers pleaded responsible in 2019 and testified towards Chang at trial.
One other co-defendant, Privinvest salesman Jean Boustani, was acquitted at a 2019 Brooklyn trial after testifying that he had no position in packaging the loans for traders.
Prosecutors mentioned officers and bankers embezzled $200 million of the $2 billion in financing raised for the tasks from 2013 to 2016.
Credit score Suisse, acquired by Swiss rival UBS, agreed to pay $475 million to Britain and america in 2021 to resolve associated bribery and fraud fees.
Mozambique on July 29 gained the majority of its $3.1 billion lawsuit in London’s Excessive Courtroom towards Emirati-Lebanese Privinvest for allegedly paying bribes to Mozambican officers and Credit score Suisse bankers to safe favorable phrases.
A Privinvest spokesperson mentioned the corporate intends to enchantment towards that court docket’s discovering that it paid bribes to Chang, and that it could be unfair to pay tons of of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in damages.
