A new report from the Central Operational Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard reveals important details about the financial transactions between the Vice President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, and the Spanish businessman Víctor de Aldama, in the framework of the so-called Koldo. case. The investigation, which followed the trail of an alleged illegal sale of Venezuelan gold, confirms the existence of negotiations between Rodríguez and Aldama for the sale of 104 gold bars worth $68.5 million to the company BANCASA SA, through a contract facilitated by the National Development Fund of Venezuela (FONDEN).
The intrigue, which dates back to the end of 2019, reveals a sophisticated operation with international ramifications. According to the documentation seized from Aldama’s electronic devices, on December 27 of the same year the contract for the sale of gold was signed, which was to be delivered between December 27, 2019 and January 6, 2020. The messages exchanged between Rodríguez and Aldama, in addition to a detailed flight plan, show the key role of the businessman in the transaction. The gold was to travel from Moscow to Caracas, with a stopover in Zambiaon a flight scheduled for January 1, 2020, which finally landed in Venezuela on January 3.
One of Aldama’s messages to Rodríguez, revealed in the UCO report, expresses concern about the operation’s delays: “I didn’t tell you, it’s the yellow thing, everything is ready and on Thursday the 350 start from there”. According to investigators, “the yellow” referred to the gold that was to be delivered by January 6, in an operation that appeared to be underway as Rodríguez finalized details of his controversial visit to Spain, which came just two weeks later .
However, the report reveals that Aldama not only acted as an intermediary in the sale of the gold, but also he had a personal interest in currying favor with Rodriguez. The businessman was hired by Globaliaone of the largest tourism companies in Spain, to recover a debt of 200 million euros that the Venezuelan government owed to the company. To ensure the success of both operations, Aldama deployed all his influence, going so far as to promise Rodríguez a series of key meetings with Spanish businessmen and politicians, and even forging signatures in his name to facilitate the procedures.
Conversations between the two, recovered from Aldama’s cell phone, show the complicity between the commissioner and the Venezuelan vice-president. Two days after the gold delivery deadline, Aldama joked with Rodríguez: “I’m going to have to use Rodríguez’s name too, ha, ha, ha,” to which the Venezuelan official responded with equal intensity: “Yes, you are now part of the family, a hug to Paty and have a good trip.”
The theft plan, which planned to send the gold under cover of a shipping medical suppliesis just one of the key elements of an operation that the UCO has described as highly irregular. According to the documents, the plane took off from Zambia on January 2 and arrived in Venezuela on January 3, with a crew consisting of Russian citizens. Although the flight manifest indicated that they were transporting medical equipment, the Civil Guard suspects that this was a cover to hide the real cargo: Venezuelan gold bars intended for BANCASA.
The operation became even more complicated when, a few days after the flight arrived in Caracas, Delcy Rodríguez landed in Spain, provoking a political storm after her controversial meeting with then-Transport Minister, Jose Luis Abalosat Madrid-Barajas Airport. Although it has been publicly stated that the vice president did not leave the airportthe investigation suggests that his visit was directly linked to the financial operations managed by Aldama.
The UCO report paints a broader picture of the relationship between Aldama and Rodríguez, noting that the commission agent was not only seeking to complete the sale of the gold, but also to mediate future deals with the Venezuelan government. Through his contacts with Rodríguez, Aldama intended to facilitate the resolution of Globalia’s debts and, at the same time, strengthen its ties with the Chavista regime. The Civil Guard continues to investigate whether these operations constitute crimes of influence peddling, money laundering or transnational corruption.
