The former Republican congressman from Miami, David Rivera, has been sentenced this Friday to a 10-year prison term for carrying out a covert lobbying campaign in favor of the Venezuelan government, acting as an agent of Caracas during the first term of President Donald Trump, in exchange for 50 million dollars.
"It was a matter of greed and betrayal (...). I believe he has learned the lesson. He has made some mistakes, but I agree with my colleagues that we must impose sentences that demonstrate respect for the law," federal judge Melissa Damian stated when announcing the ruling, according to U.S. media reports.
The magistrate also referred to the Cuban-American community settled in Florida. "This courtroom is full of Cuban-Americans who know what it means to try to escape from a communist regime. How do you think they would feel if you had received that money from the Cuban regime?" she questioned Rivera, moments before setting the sentence.
Rivera was found guilty in May for failing to register as a foreign agent with the Department of Justice and for conspiracy to launder money, charges linked to his dealings for the government of former President Nicolás Maduro.
Before knowing the sentence, Rivera spoke visibly affected to request clemency, reviewing his political career, his collaboration with Venezuelan opposition leaders, and his cancer diagnosis. "I only plead for mercy so that you do not let me die in prison (...). My children do not deserve to be left without a father," he stated.
He detailed that the genetic studies associated with his illness statistically point to a life expectancy of between seven and 10 years for patients with that type of cancer. "Your Honor, I am not here to say that I deserve something. But I will say that I do not deserve to die in prison," he affirmed before the court.
The former congressman denied having committed the crimes attributed to him. "These accusations are completely foreign to everything I have lived," he maintained, recalling his work alongside Cuban businessman Jorge Mas Canosa and his involvement in human rights causes and the defense of freedom in Cuba, even through TV Martí. He also mentioned his cooperation on Venezuela-related issues with Senator Marco Rubio, now National Security Advisor and Secretary of State during 2017.
Rivera also referred to his contacts with representatives of the Venezuelan opposition, among them Julio Borges, as proof that he was acting in favor of the dissent and not of the Venezuelan Executive. According to Rivera himself, Borges came to describe him as "a great patriot" in April 2017, during conversations about how to publicly promote the cause of the Venezuelan opposition.