WASHINGTON: A former Republican congressman and one-time close friend of Secretary of State Marco Rubio was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison for secretly lobbying the US government on behalf of Venezuela, media reported.
David Rivera was convicted in May by a federal jury in Miami of conspiracy to launder money, failing to register as a foreign agent and other charges stemming from a US$50 million contract linked to Venezuela's state oil company.
Prosecutors said Rivera was hired during US President Donald Trump's first term by the government of then-Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro to use his Republican contacts to persuade Washington to soften its policy toward Caracas.
