Woodlands Energy Exec Pleads Guilty To Violating Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

Houston, TX--A local energy executive pleaded guilty to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as part of a plan to secure contracts from Venezuela's state-owned oil and gas company Petroleos de Venezuela S.A.

As part of a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office, Roberto Enrique Rincon, 55, of The Woodlands copped to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA, one count of violating the FCPA and one count of making false statements on a tax return. The deal allowed Rincon to avoid prosecution for an additional 15 counts.

Rincon worked with Abraham Jose Shiera Bastidas, 53, of Coral Gables, Florida to submit bids for equipment and services to PDVSA through companies each of them owned. Beginning in 2009, the pair started bribing some of PDVSA's purchasing analysts to get their companies placed on bidding panels, which allowed them to secure contracts.

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Rincon also admitted that he bribed officials to secure a place on PDVSA's approved vendor list and to expedite payment for his companies. He also confessed to failure to report $6 million in dividend income from a Venezuelan company he owned on his 2010 tax return.

Rincon's prosecution is the latest in an ongoing federal investigation into bribery at PDVSA. Bastidas previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA and commit wire fraud and one count of violating the FCPA.

In March U.S. District Judge Gray H. Miller unsealed indictments against four other people, including three foreign officials, in relation to PDVSA's illegal business practices.