US prosecutors seek to prove bribes paid by Marset to Bolivian officials
The US prosecution will present evidence that Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset paid bribes in Bolivia, Uruguay, Paraguay and Venezuela.
Marset paid periodic bribes to a high-ranking Bolivian official, according to US prosecution
The United States prosecution handling the case against Sebastián Marset announced that it will present evidence that the Uruguayan drug trafficker made payments to officials in Bolivia, Uruguay, Paraguay and Venezuela, according to lostiempos.com.
According to the prosecution filing cited this Thursday by the weekly magazine Búsqueda, Marset paid officials to obtain information and protection from law enforcement. This would have allowed him to continue drug trafficking, money laundering and terrorism. The available documents do not identify the officials involved nor specify amounts or time periods.
Bolivia, the most detailed case
The prosecution filing is more specific regarding payments in Bolivia. The prosecutors argue that Marset made periodic bribes to a high-ranking Bolivian official, who distributed the money among other government members. In return, the drug trafficker obtained the return of seized cocaine through additional payments, access to drug trafficking files held by the Bolivian police and information about meetings between the DEA and country authorities.
In a call with a DEA agent while still a fugitive, Marset summarised his position: "With money. That's how things get resolved. There is no such thing as justice."
The motion also includes messages linking him to a shipment of approximately 10,000 kilos of cocaine seized in April 2021 at the port of Antwerp, Belgium.
Detained in Santa Cruz after four years as a fugitive
Marset was arrested on 13 March in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, after approximately four years as a fugitive from Paraguayan justice, and was immediately transferred to the United States.
His defence opposes the admission of Sky ECC messages as evidence. The judge will decide on their incorporation into the trial.
Source: Google News BO — Crime