Within Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) they classify Ysmel Serrano as a man who cared little about the rules of the game in the oil business.
“He was like a rustler,” said someone, alluding to those cattle thieves who took advantage of the night to tear down farm fences, enter and steal cattle, tractors, seed destined for planting and even the meat that the man from the field cherries. of wire to dry it and then eat it.
The vice presidency that Serrano held within PDVSA was in charge of fuel distribution in Venezuela. His figure was seen this Tuesday night on the VTV screen when that television plant reported on the presentation hearing of both Serrano and two other detainees by the National Police against Corruption.
Preliminary investigations locate Serrano as “an operator” of Antonio Pérez Suárez, former vice president of Commerce and Quality Supply of PDVSA, one of the first detainees in the framework of the Anti-Corruption Operation.
Pérez Suárez used a nickname to negotiate directly with the clients that Serrano brought them. “He called himself Antuan Ruíz, captain of the Army,” a source commented.
Negotiations with “special clients” were prepared by Serrano, according to investigations. These clients were charged 10% commission. For example, they were selling a ship with 2 million barrels of oil, which was what they normally negotiated.
They sold it for 64 dollars a barrel, already with the 36% reduction that PDVSA gave to facilitate the placement of crude oil, by virtue of the blockade.
In that example, the 2 million barrel ship had a total cost of $128 million. Of that figure, the Serrano-Pérez Suárez duo allegedly kept 10%, which the buyer had to deliver in cash. In that case it was 12 million 800 thousand dollars. While the foreign currency from the sale of oil had to be deposited in accounts opened in Panama, according to investigations.
To enter into the negotiation, the client had to provide a profile of the buying company, proof of the background where the existence of a vessel was recorded and the certification of the funds issued by a bank.
Campfire and prisons
Before joining PDVSA, Ysmel Serrano was in charge of the Fund for the Social Protection of Bank Deposits (Fogade) and later in the Directorate of Prisons when Tarek El Aissami was Minister of the Interior and Justice. At that time there was no Ministry for the Penitentiary Service.
Already in front of the Directorate of Prisons, Serrano negotiated with the negative leaders of the prisons and handed over the internal administration of the same, according to unofficial information at the time.
This negotiation gave the prison pranes the green light to collect the so-called “cause”, which was a kind of “life tax” which was paid every week. In case of not paying the cause, the prisoner was isolated on the roofs of the prisons.
Balance
Together with Ysmel Serrano, Salem Hassoun Atrach and Leonel Jesús Azuaje Urrea were also accused. The first two are presumably associated with the PDVSA-Crypto corruption plot, informed the Minister of Information, Alfred Ñáñez. While Azuaje is allegedly related to acts of corruption in Cartones de Venezuela.
The figure of Leonel Azuaje was not reflected in the video broadcast on Tuesday night by VTV at the time of reporting on the presentation hearing before the 2nd Control Court of Caracas, established at the headquarters of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (Sebin). . There are already 61 deprived of liberty in the Anti-Corruption Operation, according to the Public Ministry.
