Tomás Niembro Concha, ex-CEO of Nodus International Bank, has been sentenced to over nine years in prison. He siphoned millions from the bank through transactions with Miami companies and plotted to evade U.S. sanctions on Venezuela.
Niembro, a Spanish and Venezuelan national, served as the head of the bank and was sentenced in Miami. He received a 112-month prison term and three years of supervised release. He must also forfeit $16.9 million obtained through fraud.
This sentence marks the fall of Nodus, an international bank in San Juan, largely managed by Venezuelans. Its collapse in 2023 left around $80 million frozen, affecting hundreds of customers, including many Venezuelans in South Florida.
The case heavily involves Miami. Prosecutors revealed Niembro and Juan Francisco Ramirez from Miami manipulated investments for personal gain. They diverted $11 million into a Miami lender to enrich themselves. They also co-owned Nodus Finance, letting them extract further funds.
On March 19, Niembro admitted to conspiracy charges related to wire fraud and violating sanctions laws. His misuse of position to commit fraud and evade sanctions prompted the sentencing, according to Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva.
Niembro and associates hid transactions benefitting them from Nodus’s board, breaking Puerto Rican law. Between 2017 and 2023, they invested $11 million in a Miami lender, disguising self-beneficial loans as official investments.
Prosecutors stated the duo drew millions from Nodus Finance, enticing the bank’s board to buy $25.3 million in notes, diverting funds personally.
Early 2023, Nodus was liquidated by Puerto Rican regulators, forced by outstanding debts linked to fraudulent notes. Ramirez earlier confessed to wire fraud conspiracy, agreeing to forfeit $13.6 million.
The fraud extended to sanctions on Venezuela, violating U.S. policies. Between 2021 and 2023, Niembro plotted transactions with a sanctioned individual linked to Venezuela’s PDVSA. They tried to conduct unauthorized dealings regarding foreclosed property in Southampton, NY, violating sanctions.
This criminal activity compounded by evading sanctions threatened U.S. security, noted Charles Miller from IRS Criminal Investigation.
Nodus’s failure left many depositors in limbo, particularly Venezuelans who relied on its services as traditional banks became reluctant to engage them.
By 2024, $80 million remained stuck for these depositors. As an international bank, Nodus’s accounts weren’t FDIC insured, heightening the losses’ impact.
Adelaida Cedeño, a Venezuelan businesswoman, expressed her distress after losing $35,000, relying on Nodus for business transactions. Its failure endangered her enterprise and finances.
Regulatory actions followed the bank’s collapse. The Treasury in 2022 found sanctions violations tied to Venezuela. As a result, Nodus entered a supervised liquidation, revealing inconsistencies and misconduct in financial handling.
Depositors feared losing significant amounts, with few avenues for recourse, as attorney Carlos Calderon noted concerns about recovering only a small portion of owed funds.
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