The Justice Department announced the indictment of former Florida congressman David Rivera Wednesday, alleging Rivera acted as an unregistered agent of a Venezuelan businessman as part of a $5.5 million scheme.
The indictment in Washington federal court alleged Rivera, 59, worked on behalf of Raul Gorrín Belisario to get him removed from a federal sanction list starting in 2019. Rivera allegedly lobbied senior government officials on Gorrín’s behalf and created a series of shell companies, false invoices and more to hide the money he was paid.
The indictment alleged Rivera’s $5.5 million in payments were routed through several Hong Kong-based companies and to two individuals who helped him in his efforts.
