Guatemala

1989-09-12

Colonia Las Hojarascas, Km 19.5 Carretera Interamericana, Mixco, Guatemala

2459072030502, National ID No.; 245907203, Passport

Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Luis Miguel Martinez Morales (Martinez) for his role in corruption in Guatemala wherein he engaged in widespread bribery schemes, including schemes related to government contracts. Martinez is being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and targets perpetrators of serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world. Martinez is the former head of the now-defunct Centro de Gobierno, a powerful quasi-cabinet level agency created by Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei (Giammattei) at the start of his administration. President Giammattei was forced to shut down the Centro de Gobierno in December 2020 following backlash to Martinez’ rising power in the government. During his time as the head of Centro de Gobierno, Martinez was considered one of the most powerful unelected officials in the government. While he does not currently hold a government position, Martinez remains one of the most influential individuals in the Giammattei administration. Martinez has influenced the government contracts process to benefit himself and close associates. Martinez colluded with other Guatemalan government officials to illegally award contracts to favored bidders outside of Guatecompras, the Guatemalan government’s formal procurement system. Martinez and his conspirators used antiquated procurement law to forego the bidding process and secure government contracts for companies in which he has a financial interest. In 2021, Martinez solicited large kickbacks to facilitate the purchase of the Russian Sputnik V vaccines by the Government of Guatemala. Guatemala’s special anti-corruption agency investigated Martinez for his role in a controversial payment tied to the purchase of 16 million doses of Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccines by the Guatemalan government. Martinez is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13818 for being a foreign person who is a current or former government official, or person acting for or on behalf of such an official, who is responsible for or complicit in, or who has directly or indirectly engaged in, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery.

https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1941

2023-12-01

US

Executive Order 13818 - Global Magnitsky

OFAC-horizontal

Human Rights

Blocking Property, Suspending Entry

• https://ofac.treasury.gov/faqs/topic/5441

On December 23, 2016, the President signed the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (Pub. L. 114-328, Title XII, Subtitle F) (the “Act”) into law. The Act authorized the President to impose targeted sanctions on any foreign person the President determines is, among other things, responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross violations of internationally recognized human rights, or a government official, or a senior associate of such an official, responsible for, or complicit in, ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, acts of significant corruption. On December 20, 2017, the President, invoking the authority of, inter alia, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706) (IEEPA), issued Executive Order 13818 (82 FR 60839, December 26, 2017) (E.O. 13818), effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on December 21, 2017. In E.O. 13818, the President determined that serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States and declared a national emergency to deal with that threat. OFAC is issuing the Global Magnitsky Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 583 (the “Regulations”), to implement the Act and E.O. 13818, pursuant to authorities delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury in E.O. 13818. A copy of E.O. 13818 appears in appendix A to this part.

SDN