Venezuela is to charge a former manager of state oil company PDVSA’s main crude exporting port with corruption over suspected overpricing in equipment purchases.
Jesus Osorio will be charged following complaints over the purchase of two monobuoys costing $76.2m, reports Reuters.
Venezuela’s opposition parties say PDVSA has been crippled by financial malfeasance and blames corruption for some of the country’s deep economic recession.
A recent government probe found that $11bn was allegedly missing from the coffers of the state-owned oil company.
But critics say arrests linked to corruption at the Caracas-based company are perfunctory and do not tackle the roots of the problem.
PDVSA says it is taking steps to combat corruption, which has affected oil-rich Venezuela for decades, reports Reuters.
The company has also said in the past that it is victim of a right-wing campaign, led by the US and international media, to sabotage socialism.
