A forex trader found guilty of orchestrating an international money laundering network has pledged to pay the Brazilian tax authorities nearly $ 190 million as part of an agreement "of unprecedented magnitude" with the courts, a announced Thursday the floor.
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Dario Messer, nicknamed the “forex trader” , was arrested in 2019 as part of an investigation stemming from the vast anti-corruption operation Lava Jato (Express washing) which has put dozens of Brazilian executives behind bars. Former Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes is also being sued in this case. According to the agreement concluded with the prosecution and validated by justice, Dario Messer is sentenced to 18 years and 9 months in prison. But according to Brazilian media, the agreement provides that after three years of detention, he will be able to benefit from a semi-liberty regime.
At the same time, another clause of the agreement provides that the forex trader renounces "in favor of the public treasury over 99% of his assets, estimated at around 1 billion reais" (157 M EUR), said the prosecution, which emphasizes an agreement of "unprecedented scale" in Brazil. The convicted person's heritage includes "luxury buildings, capital in Brazil and abroad, as well as works of art and heritage in Paraguay linked to agricultural and real estate activities" , according to the press release.
$ 1.6 billion
The investigation showed that Dario Messer was at the head of an illegal foreign exchange, money laundering and evasion network that had covered $ 1.6 billion since 2011. The embezzlement was carried out through an online system bringing together exchange houses in 52 countries that used the accounts of more than 3,000 companies based in tax havens.
Former Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes (2013-2018), 64, is suspected by the Brazilian prosecution of having been part of the “political core” of the network. He also allegedly assisted Dario Messer when the latter was on the run, transferring $ 500,000 to him through a mutual friend.