-Caveat Lector- Click Here! Peru Arms Dealer Arrested in Miami Updated 5:49 PM ET January 29, 2001 By CATHERINE WILSON, Associated Press Writer MIAMI (AP) - A Peruvian arms dealer suspected of multimillion-dollar corruption under former President Alberto Fujimori has been arrested in Miami. Victor Alberto Venero Garrido, reportedly a close associate of former spy chief Vladimiro Montesinos, was taken into custody Friday. He is charged with stealing $100 million in pension funds, taking kickbacks and selling overpriced arms to the Peruvian military. In a court appearance Monday, Venero Garrido, 47, asked to be freed because he suffers from cancer. Defense attorney Walter Reynoso said, "He's maintained his innocence. He's a very sick man." A hearing is scheduled for Friday. Venero Garrido deposited about $15 million in a Miami bank account several weeks ago and recently withdrew some money, the FBI said. The account has been frozen. Peru issued an arrest warrant for Venero Garrido on Jan. 19 and an Interpol alert Jan. 22. The U.S. State Department expects to receive an extradition request from Peru. Venero Garrido ran the military and police pension fund and allegedly took a cut of interest payments as kickbacks on the bank deposits he made. Montesinos, once the top adviser to Fujimori, and Venero Garrido also allegedly set up their own companies to buy apartment complexes, hotels and other buildings to be sold to the pension fund at inflated prices, the warrant said. Venero Garrido also allegedly sold substandard arms and supplies to the Peruvian armed forces at "wildly excessive prices," the warrant said. Purchases included defective Soviet-made MiGs as well as arms from Belarus, Ukraine, and Bulgaria, Peruvian authorities charged. Peruvian and Swiss authorities are investigating at least $70 million in suspected arms profits linked to Montesinos in now-frozen Swiss bank accounts. Montesinos is believed to have fled Peru in October, after a video showed him apparently bribing a congressman. He is wanted on charges ranging from money laundering and influence peddling to directing death squads. The scandals surrounding Montesinos forced Fujimori into self-imposed exile in Japan in November. Peru Videos Show Alleged Corruption (Previous story) Galapagos Tanker Options Considered (Next story) U.S. Oilman Found Dead in Ecuador ©2001 At Home Corporation. All rights reserved. Excite, @Home, and the Excite and @Home logos are service marks or registered service marks of At Home in the U.S. and other countries. Disclaimer | Privacy Policy <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
