The De Grazia brothers have been imprisoned for
908 days
Since their arrest by the DGCIM on April 19, 2024.
Compass Bank & Trust
A sale signed under threat, paid with the bank's own money
Daniel De Grazia held 90.7% of Compass Bank's capital on April 19, 2024.
Three days after the arrest
On April 22, 2024, Elarba showed up at Compass Bank's offices with DGCIM officers and began giving operational and management instructions to employees as if he were the owner.
The July 9 «sale»
On July 8, 2024, a DGCIM lieutenant colonel nicknamed «Santiago» told Daniel that, on President Maduro's direct instructions, he had to hand over his shares. He made him understand that his physical safety and that of his wife, children and parents, as well as the course of his court case, depended on that signature.
The next day, after almost three months detained, incommunicado and without a defense, he was taken to an office at the detention center where the lieutenant colonel, several armed soldiers and a person identified as Porteles were waiting for him. They took off his prison uniform and made him wear a shirt and tie to simulate, by video call and before a lawyer from Dominica, the sale of his shares to Velutini, whom he says he had never seen nor negotiated with. They handed him a page in English that they did not let him read and forced him to sign. Annex 7
The money: the bank «bought itself»
According to the statement of facts, the sequence that followed proves there was no sale but a confiscation:
- August 12, 2024. The new board approved loans totaling USD 10,300,000 to five real estate companies with no solvency or collateral, for ten days and at a 2% rate.
| Company | Amount |
|---|---|
| Promotoras Inmobiliarias 2023, C.A. | USD 3,605,000 |
| Inversiones Inmobiliarias 779, C.A. | USD 2,575,000 |
| Inversora Inmobiliaria El Trébol Cuatro, S.R.C.A. | USD 1,751,000 |
| Inversiones y Servicios Inmobiliarios RS, C.A. | USD 1,545,000 |
| Servicios Inmobiliarios La Piedra Azul NC, C.A. | USD 824,000 |
| Total | USD 10,300,000 |
- The funds went to Velutini. The five companies immediately transferred them to Velutini, who deposited them in a personal account in Daniel's name at Compass Bank itself, to simulate payment for the purchase with the bank's own money. Dominica's banking rules prohibit this.
- August 28, 2024. With Daniel imprisoned and incommunicado at El Rodeo I, an unauthorized manual debit of USD 10,391,107.42 was made from that account, on Velutini's instructions, to settle debts of third-party companies linked to those who now control the bank.
The document's conclusion: the price never entered Daniel's assets. It went into the bank, out of the bank, and cleared the debts of those who took control.
Why the sale is void, according to the document
- Daniel never actually agreed to sell his shares.
- He never knew or negotiated with Velutini.
- He never received any payment.
The group's securities
The ultimate beneficiaries of several group companies were forced to ask Compass Bank to sell various securities at market price. The destination of the funds is unknown. On April 19, 2024 there were securities at Compass Bank belonging to the group and related companies, and it is now unknown whether they still exist. Annex 42
What follows summarizes the «Statement of Facts» submitted by the affected parties. Each claim refers to the annex that supports it where one exists.