Today, I am announcing the designation of former Venezuelan Minister of Electric Power and President of Corpoelec, Luis Alfredo Motta Dominguez, and former Venezuelan Deputy Minister of Finance, Investment, and Strategic Alliances for the Ministry of Electric Power and Director of Procurement of Corpoelec, Eustiquio Jose Lugo Gomez. They have been designated for accepting monetary benefits, including bribes and kickbacks, in exchange for awarding lucrative supply equipment contracts for Venezuela's state-owned electricity company, Corpoelec, and for misappropriating public funds for their own self-enrichment. In June 2019, the Department of the Treasury, in coordination with the Department of State, sanctioned Lugo and Motta for undermining democracy in Venezuela under EO 13692.
The designations announced today are made under Section 7031(c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2020 (Div. G, P.L. 116-94). Under Section 7031(c), once the Secretary of State designates officials of foreign governments, along with their immediate family members, for their involvement, directly or indirectly, in significant corruption, those individuals are indefinitely ineligible for entry into the United States. In addition to Lugo and Motta, the Department is publicly designating the following family members of Lugo's immediate family: Karina Isabel Carpio Bejarano, Luis Alfredo Motto Carpio, and Nakary Marialy Motto Carpio; and the following members of Motta's immediate family: Yomaira Isabela Lugo de Lugo, Virginia Del Valle Lugo Lugo, Victor Jesus Lugo Lugo, and Jose Lugo Lugo.
