Oil trader admits to role in major Ecuador bribery scheme

JOSHUA GOODMAN
·1 min read

MIAMI (AP) — An employee of a European trading company pleaded guilty Tuesday to helping pay more than $22 million in bribes to high-level officials in Ecuador in exchange for contracts with the state-run oil company.

As part of his plea deal in Brooklyn federal court, Raymond Kohut agreed to forfeit $2.2 million in proceeds from the bribery scheme, which he said ran from at least 2012 to August 2020.

Kohut faces up to 20 years in prison. The 68-year-old said he is not a U.S. citizen but entered his guilty plea from Long Island, New York.

It’s unclear who else benefited from the scheme. Prosecutors said only that the bribes were made on behalf of a European trading company with subsidiaries in the U.S. and elsewhere.

In a statement read in court, Kohut said at the time of the bribery scheme he was working in the Bahamas as an employee of a trading company whose name was not disclosed.

He said as part of his job, he approved large payments to two consultants with the understanding that some of their fees would be used to bribe Petroecuador officials in exchange for contracts to purchase oil products.

He said some of the payments were wired from Singapore and passed through banks in New York. He also held meetings in the U.S. with a Petroecuador official.

“I knew what I was doing was wrong and illegal,” Kohut told Judge Eric Vitaliano.

Recommended Stories

  • EXPLAINER: Can Biden add energy jobs? Hope mixes with doubt

    As Biden portrays it, his plan to invest in infrastructure — and accelerate a shift to renewable energy and electric vehicles, to more efficient homes and upgrades to the power grid — would produce jobs at least as good as the ones that might be lost in the process. To people who have devoted careers to the the fossil fuel industries, those plans may look more like a dire threat. To the president, though, out-of-work oil workers could be shifted to other jobs — plugging uncapped oil wells, for example — and thousands more positions would be created to help string power lines and build electric vehicles and their components.

  • What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

    Coronavirus-related deaths worldwide crossed 3 million on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally, as the latest global resurgence of infections is challenging vaccination efforts across the globe. Worldwide COVID-19 deaths are rising once again, especially in Brazil and India. According to a Reuters tally, it took more than a year for the global coronavirus death toll to reach 2 million.

  • A judge temporarily blocked an Ohio law requiring aborted remains be buried or cremated from taking effect

    The law, requiring fetal remains to be cremated or buried, was signed in December by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine before pro-choice groups sued to block it.

  • Kevin Durant offering advice to James Wiseman on Warriors’ system

    Warriors rookie James Wiseman on Monday revealed some of the advice given to him from Nets players Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Warriors rookie James Wiseman on Monday revealed some of the advice given to him from Nets players Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. According to Wiseman, Irving told him to just keep working in order to separate himself from the rest of the rookie class. According to Wiseman, Irving told him to just keep working in order to separate himself from the rest of the rookie class.

  • Bulls Might Want to Avoid This Chip Stock in April

    AVGO has historically underperformed during the month of April

  • George Floyd death: Chauvin 'trained to stay away from neck'

    Minneapolis Police Department training officers testified on use of force in George Floyd death.

  • Lancia 037 prototype number one up for auction

    A legend in rallying, the Lancia 037 marked the end of an era. Now, the originator of that historic victory, the first Lancia 037 prototype, is up for auction. Based (very) loosely on a Lancia Montecarlo (AKA Scorpion in the U.S.), the the front and rear sub-sections are tube-framed, and the engine rotated 90 degrees for a longitudinal orientation.

  • Stocks Mixed After Rally to Record; Bonds Climb: Markets Wrap

    (Bloomberg) -- Stocks were mixed after a rally that drove the equity market to all-time highs. Treasuries climbed, while the dollar fell.The S&P 500 was little changed as a drop in technology companies offset gains in retailers. Stocks tied to the Archegos Capital Management crisis whipsawed after Credit Suisse Group AG unloaded more than $2 billion of the shares in the latest block trades stemming from the liquidation of Bill Hwang’s fund. ViacomCBS Inc., Vipshop Holdings Ltd. and Farfetch Ltd. bounced after slumping in early trading.Investors bought stocks in record amounts in the first quarter of 2021 as a combination of generous stimulus and bets on an economic recovery drove $372 billion into global equity funds, according to Bank of America Corp. strategists. The data confirm the bullish market sentiment that has pushed shares to fresh highs, with optimism over vaccination efforts outweighing the fear that higher bond yields can interfere with the rally.“Stocks’ momentum is strong, no doubt about that,” said Lindsey Bell, chief investment strategist at Ally Invest. “But the market may be ready to take a breather as investors digest all the good news, determine how much of that is priced in and weigh it against uncertain risks like inflation.”The rally that lifted the S&P 500 above 4,000 for the first time is unusually broad. That’s evident from the percentage of the index’s component stocks that closed higher than their 200-day moving average, a gauge of price trends. Last week’s readings peaked at 94.4%, the highest since January 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. They were the first to surpass 94% since May 2013 and contrasted with levels as low as 3.2% in March 2020.On the economic front, data showed U.S. job openings rose to a two-year high in February, led by gains in some of the industries hardest hit during the pandemic. The International Monetary Fund upgraded its global growth forecast for the second time in three months, while warning about widening inequality and a divergence between advanced and lesser-developed nations.Some key events to watch this week:The 2021 Spring Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank Group take place virtually. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell takes part in a panel about the global economy on Thursday.The Fed publishes minutes from its March meeting on Wednesday.Japan releases its balance of payments numbers Thursday.China’s consumer and producer prices data are due Friday.These are some of the main moves in markets:StocksThe S&P 500 was little changed as of 1:48 p.m. New York time.The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.7%.The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.1%.CurrenciesThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index declined 0.1%.The euro climbed 0.3% to $1.1854.The Japanese yen appreciated 0.3% to 109.89 per dollar.BondsThe yield on two-year Treasuries declined one basis point to 0.16%.The yield on 10-year Treasuries decreased four basis points to 1.66%.The yield on 30-year Treasuries fell three basis points to 2.32%.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude climbed 1% to $59.25 a barrel.Gold rose 0.8% to $1,742.34 an ounce.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • The Cambridge Kids Celebrated Easter With Kate Middleton In The Cutest Way

    Meanwhile, I just sat here shoving Peeps into my mouth.

  • Alvarez, Mighty Mouse back on US TV with One Championship

    Demetrious Johnson and Eddie Alvarez have never gone this long without a proper fight in their lengthy mixed martial arts careers. “I got a chance to see who I am outside of fighting,” said Alvarez, the 37-year-old former UFC and Bellator lightweight champ. Johnson takes on Adriano Moraes for the One flyweight title, while Alvarez meets Iuri Lapicus.

  • JLo’s magazine spread leaves out one major man in her life: ARod’s nowhere in sight

    “I love what I do,” says all-around superstar Jennifer Lopez, May’s InStyle’s cover girl. “I can honestly say I’m living the dream.”

  • Khloé Kardashian's team is scrambling to erase all traces of a photo of her that was posted online 'by mistake'

    Kardashian's rep told Page Six the photo of Khloé standing by a pool was "posted to social media without permission by mistake by an assistant."

  • Georgia Governor Slams MLB for Moving All-Star Game to Colorado Despite Similar Voting Laws

    Georgia Governor Brian Kemp on Tuesday blasted Major League Baseball’s decision to pull the 2021 All-Star game from Atlanta over a new voting law and relocate the game to Colorado, which has some similar and even more restrictive voting laws. On Friday, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement that after “thoughtful conversations with Clubs, former and current players, the Players Association, and The Players Alliance” he had decided that the “best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game and MLB Draft.” Manfred said MLB “fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.” According to the Associated Press, the MLB plans to move the game to Denver’s Coors Field. “Georgia has 17 days of in-person early voting including two optional Sundays, Colorado has 15,” Kemp said in an appearance on Fox News. “So what I’m being told, they also have a photo ID requirement. So it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me.” While Georgia requires identification for all in-person and absentee voting, Colorado law requires identification for in-person voting and first-time mail-in voters may be required to include a copy of their ID with their ballot. After first-time mail-in votes, Colorado uses signature matching for absentee ballots. Georgia voters without ID can use the last four digits of their social security number, a utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or another government document with their name and address on it, according to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office. Colorado automatically sends absentee ballots to all registered voters; Georgia sends the ballots only upon request in order to prevent sending ballots to the wrong address or to those no longer eligible to vote. Kemp also called President Biden’s appearance at the NCAA championship game in Indiana “so hypocritical” as the governor said the state is “the birthplace for the photo ID requirement.” MLB moved the All-Star game after Biden told ESPN that he would “strongly support” moving the July 13 game because of the law he described as “Jim Crow on steroids.”

  • I'm a part-time Amazon delivery driver. Here's how we cheat to get around the strict rules and constant monitoring.

    "We've created a workaround to game the system," says one Amazon driver, who eats lunch while driving and has had to pee in water bottles.

  • South Florida restaurant inspectors find a roach in the rice and flies on plantains

    A shorter Sick and Shut Down List of South Florida restaurants that failed state inspection has a repeater and one that demonstrates diversity of yuck.

  • Facebook, Google, and other tech giants donated tens of thousands of dollars to a Republican group that's pushing voter suppression laws

    After pledging to halt all political contributions in early 2021, Facebook donated $50,000 to a Republican group that supports voter suppression laws.

  • Joss Whedon threatened to harm Gal Gadot's career if she didn't say the lines he wrote for 'Justice League,' report says

    The Hollywood Reporter's sources say Whedon also made disparaging comments about "Wonder Woman" director Patty Jenkins.

  • Norwegian Cruise Line unveiled 3 new cruises this summer after announcing new vaccine requirement for all passengers and crew

    Several cruise lines - including Royal Caribbean and Virgin Voyages- have already mandated the COVID-19 vaccine for its guests, crew, or both.

  • Manufacturer that ruined 15 million Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses once got a $163 million federal contract to improve its facility: NYT

    The federal government first invested in the Emergent BioSolutions more than eight years ago, the New York Times reported.

  • Sabres sitting Taylor Hall in anticipation he'll be traded

    The Buffalo Sabres are taking the precautionary step of scratching forward Taylor Hall for their game at New Jersey on Tuesday in anticipation the NHL's 2018 MVP will will be traded in the coming days. Team spokesman Chris Dierken announced that Hall will not be in the lineup in providing the update shortly after interim coach Don Granato called it a possibility before concluding his teleconference call with the media on Tuesday. The decision to sit Hall comes in the final week before the NHL’s trade deadline on Monday, and with the slumping Sabres in sell-off mode.