A federal jury in Utica, New York, has convicted a Colombian man and his New Jersey wife in a scheme that prosecutors said sought more than $13 million USD in federal aid for elderly, disabled and homeless Americans. Luis Pino-Copete, 42, of Bogotá, and Jael Watts, 45, of Alloway, New Jersey, were found guilty of all the charges against them, which included wire fraud conspiracy, making and using a false document and aggravated identity theft. The US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York announced the verdict on October 2, 2026, after a trial of several weeks, and said the evidence showed the couple collected more than $1.6 million USD of the money they claimed.

Watts ran Pearl Transit Corporation, a New Jersey nonprofit that, according to the third superseding indictment on which the jury convicted the couple, claimed to provide transportation, street outreach and charitable dental services to elderly, disabled and economically disadvantaged people in several states. Between July 2019 and October 2025, she billed state and local agencies that distribute federal pass-through funds for services the company never delivered, prosecutors said, and Pearl Transit employed no drivers at all. The payroll and client records behind its invoices used personal information that the defendants obtained without lawful authority, according to the indictment. Prosecutors said evidence at trial showed that some riders on those records had died before the dates of their purported trips, and that one woman listed as a driver held only a learner’s permit at the time.

The Couple Answered a State Audit With Fake Driver Reports and Bank Statements, Indictment Says

According to the indictment, Pearl Transit emailed reimbursement requests to New York State agencies in September and October 2024. Prosecutors said Watts sought nearly $750,000 USD in those late-2024 claims to the New York State Department of Transportation under the Section 5310 program of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Formally called Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities, the program funds transportation for older adults and people with disabilities where existing service is unavailable or insufficient, and the FTA apportioned $443.9 million USD to it nationwide in fiscal year 2025, according to the agency.

The Office of the New York State Comptroller found the invoices suspicious and began auditing them, prosecutors said. By January 2025, its auditors had asked Pearl Transit for the licenses of all drivers it claimed to employ, and the applications of all riders it claimed to transport, during the first quarter of 2022, according to the indictment. The comptroller’s office enlisted the US Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, whose referral put the matter before federal prosecutors in 2025, according to the US Attorney’s Office. The Office of Inspector General of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) joined the investigation later.

Watts and Pino-Copete married in Colombia in 2023, and he joined the scheme in January 2024, according to prosecutors. The indictment, filed September 10, 2026, says the couple lived together in New Jersey and lays out how the pair responded to the comptroller’s audit in early 2025. According to the indictment, Pino-Copete used a data service of TransUnion (NYSE: TRU), under an existing Pearl Transit contract, to look up dates of birth, including those of people whose names then appeared on a fabricated client list. The indictment does not accuse TransUnion of wrongdoing. When the auditors asked which company checked the licenses of Pearl Transit’s purported drivers, Watts told Pino-Copete she would “make up a report” and “a provider as well,” the indictment says. She then used a freelancing service, paid for with his credit card, to create a domain, logo and voicemail for a fictitious firm called Actual Check, whose name appeared on four motor vehicle reports sent to the auditors.

The auditors next asked for proof of driver payroll and vehicle insurance. At Watts’ request, Pino-Copete sent her a January 2025 statement from his own account at Bancolombia and a 2015 Colombian insurance policy in his name. She used them to produce fake Bancolombia statements falsely showing Pearl Transit paying its New York drivers from a Colombian account, along with a fake record of a van insured in Colombia, and sent both to the comptroller’s office in March 2025, according to the indictment. Bancolombia, which since a 2025 corporate reorganization has operated under the holding company Grupo Cibest (NYSE: CIB; BVC: CIBEST, PFCIBEST), is not accused of wrongdoing in the indictment.

Prosecutors said investigators who searched the couple’s phones found many messages about producing paperwork for the auditors. Among the remarks prosecutors attributed to Watts were “one has to be committed to this type of work . . . and I am committed” and “they are not smart . . . we are much smarter.”

Prosecutors Say Four Local Administrators Paid Out More Than $1.6 Million USD

Pearl Transit’s claims also drew on two HUD programs, the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and the Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG). Some of the funds were provided during the COVID-19 pandemic under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, according to prosecutors.

Four local administrators paid Pearl Transit, according to prosecutors. The City of Raleigh, North Carolina, paid $379,149 USD in Section 5310 funds, and Gwinnett County, Georgia, paid $529,500 USD in CDBG funds. In California, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority paid $429,885 USD in Section 5310 funds, and Kern County paid $283,000 USD in ESG funds.

Bank records showed that the more than $1.5 million USD the couple received from Georgia, North Carolina and California was spent entirely on personal expenses, prosecutors said. Those expenses included more than $100,000 USD on rentals of Porsche (XETRA: P911) cars; more than $100,000 USD at Loro Piana, an Italian luxury clothing brand, in Manhattan; and nearly a year of travel in 2024 that took them to Colombia, Aruba and Europe, including four months in Europe. At trial, prosecutors offered selfies that they said the couple took at a Tuscan spa and while touring a BMW (XETRA: BMW, BMW3) plant.

“These two defendants traded their Tuscan spa robes for his and hers orange jumpsuits.”

— John A. Sarcone III, first assistant US attorney for the Northern District of New York

Prosecutors described another part of the scheme involving dentures. Pearl Transit sought CDBG reimbursement for prostheses that it said homeless people received at no charge. According to prosecutors, the couple in fact produced the dentures at home on an unsanitary 3-D printer and charged homeless people fees to scan their mouths and fit the dentures.

Prosecutors said this video call shows Pino-Copete displaying cash to Watts while she was jailed, and that the money came from a homeless dental client at a flea market in Maryland. (Photo courtesy US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York)

Prosecutors Say Pino-Copete Took a Larger Role After Watts Was Arrested

Pino-Copete, who entered the United States in January 2025 on a visa issued the previous month, took on a larger role after Watts was arrested on a wire fraud complaint in July 2025, prosecutors said. According to the indictment, while Watts was held at the Albany County Correctional Facility in September 2025, she had Pino-Copete email the City of San Bernardino, California, in her name, blaming a family death for her absence and concealing that she had been charged and detained. Prosecutors said the couple was trying to obtain $50,000 USD in federal funds from the city at the time. In October 2025, he signed a CDBG contract with the city in her name, the indictment says. He was charged in December 2025 and held pending trial. The FTA suspended Watts and Pearl Transit from federal procurement and nonprocurement transactions on December 3, 2025, and suspended Pino-Copete on February 17, 2026, according to the transportation inspector general.

Pino-Copete speaks with Watts by video call in September 2025, while she was held at the Albany County Correctional Facility; prosecutors said the image shows the pair conspiring to submit false documents to the City of San Bernardino. (Photo courtesy US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York)

The Defendants Face Sentencing in January 2027

Watts was convicted of 10 counts: the three she shared with Pino-Copete, plus one count of false statement, a second count of aggravated identity theft and five counts of wire fraud. The false-statement count concerned a 2022 Section 5310 application that Watts submitted to the New York State Department of Transportation bearing an attorney’s affirmation, although the attorney had not reviewed or signed it, according to the indictment.

US District Judge Anthony J. Brindisi of the US District Court for the Northern District of New York has scheduled sentencing for January 21, 2027. Each defendant faces between two and 20 years in prison, fines of up to $250,000 USD and as many as three years of supervised release, and the two face a restitution order of at least $1.9 million USD, according to prosecutors. Because Pino-Copete is not a US citizen, he also faces deportation once any prison sentence ends, prosecutors said.

Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department‘s National Fraud Enforcement Division, which the department created in April 2026, said the defendants “fabricated payrolls and client lists, even using the identities of deceased individuals, to siphon millions meant for the most vulnerable Americans.”

Headline photo: Jael Watts and Luis Pino-Copete pose for selfies at a Tuscan spa and during what prosecutors described as a tour of a BMW plant; both photos were offered at trial. (Photos courtesy US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York; composite: Finance Colombia)

Two decades of fiscal data show that Colombia’s gross general government debt has moved through four distinct macroeconomic phases, ending the current cycle at a level that is materially higher than its pre-pandemic baseline. Persistent annual fiscal deficits, currency volatility, an emergency spending shock and weaker-than-projected tax revenues have combined to push the ratio of public debt to gross domestic product from the mid-30s percent range in the mid-2000s to a band of roughly 60 to 62 percent at the start of 2026, according to figures published by the Ministerio de Hacienda y Crédito Público and the Banco de la República.

The shift carries direct implications for sovereign bondholders, multinationals operating in Colombia and any investor pricing country risk in the Andean region. All three major rating agencies — S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Ratings and Fitch Ratings — now place Colombia in speculative-grade, or junk, territory, with consecutive downgrades through 2025 and into early 2026.

“The activation of the escape clause confirms that the deterioration observed in 2024 will not be corrected in 2025.” — Renzo Merino, sovereign analyst, Moody’s Ratings

The commodity cushion: 2006 to 2014

During the global commodity supercycle, Colombia benefited from sustained gross domestic product growth and steady government revenue. Hydrocarbon and mining receipts — channeled through Ecopetrol (NYSE: EC; BVC: ECOPETROL) and the broader extractive sector — supplied a substantial share of national tax intake. The debt-to-GDP ratio remained relatively stable during this period, generally hovering between 34 and 38 percent. Even with chronic primary deficits, nominal growth in the denominator absorbed new borrowing, masking the underlying structural imbalance that the Comité Autónomo de la Regla Fiscal (CARF) would later flag as the persistent driver of fiscal stress.

The currency and revenue shock: 2014 to 2019

The mechanics of the ratio changed sharply when Brent crude prices collapsed in late 2014. Reduced hydrocarbon royalties widened the fiscal gap just as the Colombian peso depreciated against the US dollar. Because a significant share of Colombia’s sovereign liabilities is denominated in foreign currency, the peso’s slide automatically inflated the local-currency value of outstanding external debt when measured against domestic GDP. The combined effect — wider deficits funded by new borrowing, plus a valuation effect on existing dollar-denominated obligations — pushed the ratio steadily higher through the late 2010s.

The structural revenue weakness that surfaced during this period has remained a recurring theme in subsequent fiscal assessments from Fedesarrollo and the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana Observatorio Fiscal, both of which have noted that successive tax reforms failed to fully close the gap between commitments and ordinary income.

The pandemic ceiling: 2020

The combination of emergency social spending under the Ingreso Solidario program, expanded health outlays and a sharp contraction in nominal GDP drove the ratio to a historic peak above 65 percent in 2020. The Ministerio de Hacienda reports the all-time high at 65.3 percent of GDP that year. The government activated the escape clause of the regla fiscal — Colombia’s fiscal rule, codified in Law 1473 of 2011 and modified by Law 2155 of 2021 — to accommodate the spending response, suspending the rule for 2020 and 2021.

That episode also triggered the first sovereign downgrade cycle: S&P Global Ratings cut Colombia’s long-term foreign currency rating to BB+ from BBB- in May 2021 after the administration of then-president Iván Duque withdrew a tax reform bill following street protests, costing the country its investment-grade status with that agency.

The new baseline: 2023 to 2026

Strong post-pandemic nominal growth briefly pulled the debt ratio down toward 57 percent in 2023. The decline did not hold. Structural spending pressures, elevated international interest rates and tax collections below budgeted projections pushed the ratio back up, establishing a new operating band around 60 to 62 percent of GDP. The Ministerio de Hacienda reported government debt to GDP at 61.3 percent for 2024.

The administration of President Gustavo Petro and Finance Minister Germán Ávila Plazas activated the regla fiscal escape clause for a second time in June 2025, with the Consejo Superior de Política Fiscal (Confis) approving a three-year suspension covering 2025 through 2027. The decision came despite an unfavorable technical opinion from the Comité Autónomo de la Regla Fiscal, which concluded that legal conditions for activating the clause were not met outside of a national emergency. The clause had previously been invoked only during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the Marco Fiscal de Mediano Plazo (MFMP) presented by the Ministerio de Hacienda, net public debt to GDP is projected to rise from 53 percent in 2023 to 61.3 percent in 2025 and approximately 63 percent in 2026. The fiscal deficit for 2025 was initially projected at 7.1 percent of GDP and later revised to roughly 6.2 percent of GDP, with the administration targeting a deficit below 6 percent of GDP for 2026.

Debt service consumes a larger share of the budget

The cost of servicing this debt has reshaped the structure of the national budget. The 2026 draft budget presented by Minister Ávila totals $557 trillion COP, equivalent to roughly $134.7 billion USD, and represents 28.9 percent of GDP. Of that, debt servicing costs are projected at $102.5 trillion COP, or 5.3 percent of GDP, down from 6.2 percent of GDP in 2025.

The figures published by the Ministerio de Hacienda for domestic debt service in 2026 are higher when measured against tax intake alone: of an estimated $130 trillion COP in domestic debt service, $79 trillion COP corresponds to principal that can be rolled over through new issuances, while $51 trillion COP represents interest payments funded directly from the budget. Against projected tax revenue of approximately $300 trillion COP, that implies roughly one in every three pesos collected by the central government is allocated to interest on existing debt.

Rating agencies reprice the sovereign

The rating cycle has accelerated alongside the fiscal trajectory. Moody’s Ratings downgraded Colombia to Baa3 and subsequently into junk territory in 2025, citing the suspension of the fiscal rule. S&P Global Ratings issued a further downgrade in April 2026, its second cut in less than a year, on the same persistent deficit and debt concerns. Fitch Ratings also moved Colombia deeper into speculative grade in December 2025.

The Banco de la República reported external debt — combining public and private liabilities — at $238.7 billion USD at the close of November 2025, equivalent to 54.8 percent of GDP, an increase of $15.8 billion USD from January of the same year. The Colombian economy is currently valued at approximately $435 billion USD.

What investors are watching next

The Comité Autónomo de la Regla Fiscal has stated in its most recent reports to Congress that the 2025 primary balance target was missed by a wide margin even after the escape clause was activated, and that incoming projections for 2026 raise the bar for any return to the original fiscal rule by 2028. Business groups including Fenalco and the Consejo Gremial Nacional have publicly opposed the suspension and signaled potential legal challenges.

The 2026 financing plan disclosed by the Ministerio de Hacienda includes approximately $4.6 billion USD in global bond issuances, primarily to refinance a one-year Swiss-franc Total Return Swap operation valued at roughly $9.3 billion USD. The ministry has stated that the issuance does not constitute net new external debt. Updated debt and deficit targets are scheduled for release in the next iteration of the Plan Financiero.

For executives operating in Colombia or evaluating new investment, the baseline shift from a mid-30s to a low-60s debt-to-GDP environment alters several variables simultaneously: peso volatility tied to refinancing cycles, the trajectory of corporate tax policy as Congress weighs successive reform proposals, and the path of domestic interest rates set by the Banco de la República as it manages inflation alongside elevated sovereign funding costs. Detailed historical and forward-looking debt data is published by the Investor Relations Colombia office of the Ministerio de Hacienda.

Colombia’s General Government Debt-to-GDP Ratio (2006-2026) (image: Google)

Clarke’s hire is designed to advance the Group’s 2025 strategic priorities, including executive staffing in fleet management, finance, corporate responsibility, and loyalty programs. His role is focused on commercial oversight, optimizing revenue generation, and customer-centric innovation.

Clarke brings over two decades of international experience in the aviation sector, with a background spanning commercial strategy, customer experience design, network planning, fleet management, and corporate development. His career history includes leadership positions such as CCO of Air France-KLM Group (AF on EPA; AFRAF on OTCPK) and Air France, as well as executive roles at Qantas (QAN on ASX), Air Canada (AC on TSX), and Bluepoint Aviation. Clarke has been recognized for his leadership in complex network and product restructuring initiatives following the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his capacity as CCO at Grupo Abra, Clarke is tasked with directing the Group’s commercial strategy. Key responsibilities include overseeing revenue generation, improving operational competitiveness, and enhancing the customer experience. He will be responsible for aligning the commercial operations of Abra’s portfolio airlines, leveraging organizational synergies and economies of scale to drive performance.

Additionally, Clarke will lead the development and implementation of revenue strategies, solidify commercial alliances, and supervise the design of products and services intended to improve passenger satisfaction and loyalty.

Adrian Neuhauser, CEO of Grupo Abra, noted that Clarke’s global experience and strategic perspective are essential components for the Group’s long-term objective of delivering a relevant value proposition to customers and stakeholders across Latin America.

Abra Group Chief Commercial Officer Angus Clarke. Photo credit: Abra Group.

Everyone wants to date the good-looking girl, and that young lady is called Miss Tourism. It has been picking up since COVID-19, and has been one of the big Gustavo Petro bets and has paid off. Last year, for the first time, Colombia (6.9 million) was the most visited country in South America – this year that number is set to grow another 4.3% to 7.2 million, and in reality, the country is just getting started. Tourism is threatening to bring more dollars into Colombia than oil in 2025.

No surprise then that a dozen presidential pre-candidates descended on the ANATO tourism forum in Medellín to sit on panels to give their views on a subject they know nothing about. Hours of delegates’ time were wasted on listening to the peacocks and peahens as they preened their feathers.

Another sector undergoing a boom is agriculture, where, coincidentally, Petro has also been concentrating his efforts. Coffee, flowers, and palm oil are all booming, but there are plenty of other products. Petro has tried to push ahead with the repatriation of lands stolen during the armed conflict, especially by the paramilitaries, but this is a slow process. One can only imagine what a bread basket (as opposed to basket case) Colombia would be if 1% of its population (Oxfam) didn’t control 81% of the land with little or no interest in farming or sharing it – the worst reading in Latam.

Elsewhere (say it quietly so as not to upset the elite), domestic demand is following confidence upwards with imports according to Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística – DANE Colombia rising another 14.5% in June, driven by capital and consumer goods – the downside is that the growing economy added another $1.1 billion USD to the deficit.

The initial tax reform has been presented in conjunction with the budget – both will be a struggle to get through congress as the peacocks/peahens prepare themselves for the March elections. This will be a challenge for Ministerio de Hacienda Germán Ávila. What really sticks in the throat is ex-finance ministers such as Mauricio Cárdenas telling us how they would do it – they already had their chance, and failed.

There is much news, but just to mention that in this disaster of a country, which everyone should leave, the stock market continues to rage (+34% YTD) on improving volumes and more Colombians than ever before (80,000) traded the stock market in 1H2025, according to Asobolsa.

Just another of the inconvenient truths. One can only imagine that if Colombia is even half the ship was rowing in the same direction for just one day.

Have a great day.

Roops.

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FARC dissidents arrested in Putumayo, Peru, during Operation Armageddon. Photo credit: Ministerio de Defensa del Perú/Wikipedia.

Adding to these concerns is the delayed routine review of Colombia’s economic status, known as the Article IV consultation. According to José Ignacio López, President of ANIF, this delay stems from doubts regarding the credibility of the government’s fiscal figures, particularly the 2025 deficit target of 5.1 percent of GDP.

Saturday, Julie Kozack, spokesperson for the IMF, issued a statement saying:

“From April 26, 2025, Colombia’s continued qualification for the IMF’s Flexible Credit Line (FCL) is contingent on the completion of both the ongoing Article IV consultation (see staff statement issued on April 18, 2025) and a subsequent FCL mid-term review. The FCL arrangement was approved on April 26, 2024, for two years with a mid-term review to assess continued qualification.”

The press release clarified that the FCL was approved for two years, until April 26, 2026, “with a midterm review to assess the continuation of qualification.” Since the midpoint of this period has passed and the midterm review has not commenced, Colombia cannot access the FCL resources, despite maintaining the borrowing limit, until these two requirements are met.

“It cannot be used until the government presents a credible fiscal plan. In other words, it was on autopilot, and now the IMF says there is too much fog, and they prefer to land to avoid risks. They will not lend money to a government that squanders,” commented former Minister of Finance, Mauricio Cárdenas.

As approved by the IMF on April 26, 2024, the available amount for Colombia under this new quota is approximately $8.1 billion USD for crisis prevention.

Colombia has had access to this FCL since 2009, usable at any time. The only instance of its use was during the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2020, Colombia disbursed approximately $5.4 billion USD to meet balance of payments’ needs and address pandemic consequences.

FMI suspende la línea de crédito para emergencias que tenía Colombia desde 2009. Es el peor mensaje para los mercados financieros.

Nos quedamos sin llanta de repuesto justo cuando la economía mundial está llena de incertidumbres. La línea de crédito flexible era el mayor seguro…

— Mauricio Cárdenas S. (@MauricioCard) April 26, 2025

However, these resources are now unavailable due to the IMF’s suspension. This development coincides with the IMF’s recent downward revision of Colombia’s economic growth forecast for 2025, from 2.5 percent to 2.4 percent. According to Luis Fernando Mejía, Executive Director of Fedesarrollo, this decision reflects the severity of Colombia’s fiscal situation, with a 2024 deficit of 6.8 percent of GDP, the third-highest in 120 years.

The fiscal rule was also breached in 2024, and the 2025 deficit target of 5.1 percent of GDP lacks market credibility.

“It is the worst message for financial markets. We are left without a spare tire just when the global economy is full of uncertainties. The Flexible Credit Line was the biggest insurance the Colombian economy had. The IMF is viewing Colombia’s situation very negatively. Difficult times are coming,” said Mauricio Cárdenas.

Former Minister of Finance and Rector of Universidad EIA, José Manuel Restrepo, stated that the IMF’s decision creates a scenario of increased uncertainty, potentially raising the country’s risk premium and public financing costs.

“We saw this in recent Colombian placements, which are between 30 and 50 percent more expensive than the historical financing cost of the National Government,” he said.

This would lead to higher interest payments on public debt, a higher exchange rate, and reduced space for productive and social investment in the national budget.

No es buena noticia para Colombia 🇨🇴!! La línea ha sido siempre un respaldo y confianza en la política macroeconómica. Respaldaría eventualmente al país en una situación coyuntural difícil como sucedió en la pandemia parcialmente, y perderla o supeditarla a otras decisiones,… https://t.co/He3GmD4WyN pic.twitter.com/RvBO6I5Lx4

— José Manuel Restrepo Abondano (@jrestrp) April 26, 2025

“The effect will be clearer on the Colombian peso, because this Flexible Credit Line is understood as a possibility of having contingent international reserves. Probably, this Monday at market opening, we will have a weaker Colombian peso,” predicted José Ignacio López.

While the FCL suspension is concerning, José Ignacio López believes the government has options for resolution, as it is not a definitive decision.

“The government still has limited room to maneuver to send a message of fiscal adjustment that allows closing the Article IV and keeping the Flexible Credit Line open until April 2026. The government must present a credible fiscal plan. The fiscal situation is deteriorating, and protecting that credit line is key in the current situation,” he added.

Luis Fernando Mejía also stated that the IMF’s decision is a further warning for the government, reinforcing the urgent need to cut the 2025 national budget. This cut would need to total 40 trillion pesos to avoid another breach of the fiscal rule and resume the path of deficit and public debt reduction.

The Ministry of Finance has stated that it is analyzing Colombia’s fiscal situation and “advancing in the implementation of economic measures that consider the evolution of domestic and external economic conditions, as well as compliance with the goals included in the National Development Plan.”

Photo credit: IMF/Melissa Lyttle/Facebook.

Today, good news only. Let’s chat about Colombia’s continued home run, tourism. Whilst Gustavo Petro was only picking up the baton of the upward curve that had existed since COVID-19 finished, he strongly declared that tourism would eventually replace commodities in terms of dollar revenues and was the fastest form to lift needy communities out of poverty.

Last year saw (tourism) dollar revenues hit $10 billion USD, not quite at commodity level, but closing very fast, and Colombia is only just beginning to realize it’s enormous potential as a desirable destination. The United Nations has also supported globally the concept of decreasing poverty via tourism, and there is a huge drive to push that campaign forward.

This week, ANATO Vitrina Turistica, the largest tourism fair in the region, took place in Bogotá. A total of 5,000 companies were represented across 46 countries with 50,000 attendees. I was there, and the pavilions were hopping; at times, it was like New Year’s in Times Square. Equally, at FITUR in Madrid a month ago, Colombia was in play.

2024 was a record year, and already, 2025 is set to surpass those numbers. In January, international airline arrivals increased by 13% to 2,254,000. Attendees at ANATO also reported a healthy start to the year.

But it will not be Medellín or Cartagena that will be the forward-looking driver. Instead, it will smaller towns and villages as visitors locally join the international tendency to seek more adventurous destinations. Some future hotspots haven’t been heard of by most Colombians, let alone by those arriving from overseas.

When will it match oil & coal? Judging by the vibes in the pavilions, it will possibly be sooner than expected, but in an ideal world, both will continue in rude health.

In other news. From Fedesarrollo, there was an improvement in both industrial and retail confidence, this dovetails with the recent consumer reading.

The government also announced that it had carved out 69 sectors, spread across 270 square kilometers, for future offshore eolic energy auctions—that’s wind power to us mere mortals.

Always good to end on the positives.

Have a great Friday.

Regards Roops.

Never miss Rupert’s latest commentary.
Follow him now on LinkedIn to see What Jumps Out.

Photo credit: wjgomes from Pixabay.

The Grenons, all of Bradenton, Florida, manufactured, promoted, and sold a product they named Miracle Mineral Solution (“MMS”). MMS is a chemical solution containing sodium chlorite and water which, when ingested orally, became chlorine dioxide, a powerful bleach typically used for industrial water treatment or bleaching textiles, pulp, and paper. The Grenons claimed that ingesting MMS could treat, prevent, and cure COVID-19. The FDA, however, had not approved MMS for treatment of COVID-19, or for any other use. Rather, in prior official warning statements, the FDA had strongly urged consumers not to purchase or use MMS for any reason, explaining that drinking MMS was the same as drinking bleach and could cause dangerous side effects, including severe vomiting, diarrhea, and life-threatening low blood pressure. See https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/danger-dont-drink-miracle-mineral-solution-or-similar-products. In fact, FDA received reports of people requiring hospitalizations, developing life-threatening conditions, and even dying after drinking MMS.

Before marketing MMS as a cure for COVID-19, the Grenons marketed MMS as a miracle cure-all for dozens of other serious diseases and disorders, such as cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and leukemia, even though the FDA had not approved MMS for any use. The Grenons sold tens of thousands of bottles of MMS nationwide, including to consumers throughout South Florida. They sold this dangerous product under the guise of Genesis II Church of Health and Healing (“Genesis”), an entity they created to avoid government regulation of MMS and shield themselves from prosecution. Genesis’ own websites describe Genesis as a “non-religious church,” and defendant Mark Grenon, the co-founder of Genesis, has repeatedly acknowledged that Genesis “has nothing to do with religion,” and that he founded Genesis to “legalize the use of MMS” and avoid “going [ ] to jail.” The Genesis websites further stated that MMS could be acquired only through a “donation” to Genesis, but the donation amounts for MMS orders were set at specific dollar amounts, and were mandatory, such that the donation amounts were effectively just sales prices. The Grenons received more than $1 million from selling MMS.

The federal jury also found defendants Jonathan and Jordan Grenon guilty of criminal contempt of court. The United States previously filed a civil case against the defendants and Genesis II Church of Health and Healing. See United States v. Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, et al., Case No. 20-21601-CV-WILLIAMS. In that civil case, the United States obtained court orders halting the Grenons’ distribution of MMS. The Grenons willfully violated those court orders and continued to distribute MMS. The Grenons also threatened the federal judge presiding over the civil case, and threatened that, should the government attempt to enforce the court orders halting their distribution of MMS, the Grenons would “pick up guns” and instigate “a Waco.”

During trial in July 2023, the jury saw photos and video of a dirty rundown shed in Jonathan Grenon’s backyard in Bradenton, Florida, where the defendants were manufacturing their MMS.  These photos showed dozens of blue chemical drums containing nearly 10,000 pounds of sodium chlorite powder, thousands of bottles of MMS, and other items used in the manufacture and distribution of MMS.  The blue chemical drums of sodium chlorite powder—the primary active ingredient in MMS—had warning labels advising the product was toxic, flammable, and highly dangerous to consume.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Assistant Commissioner Justin D. Green of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI), Miami Field Office, announced the sentence.

FDA-OCI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael B. Homer and John Shipley prosecuted the case.

Lapointe commends and thanks the government of Colombia for its assistance. Lapointe also extends his gratitude to the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section (NDDS) Judicial Attachés in Bogota, Colombia for their substantial assistance in securing the arrest and extradition of Mark Grenon and Joseph Grenon to the United States.

Below: Grenon father & son hawking the lethal bleach solution and claiming it is a “Religious Sacrament.” Apparently the website where the video is hosted is a clearinghouse for other medical scams & conspiracy theories.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at https://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 21-cr-20242.

Viva and competing carrier Avianca have both expressed a degree of frustration with the Colombian government, as the merger proposed by the two airlines last year was first rejected by Aerocivil, Colombia’s civil aviation authority, and then on appeal to Colombia’s transportation ministry, the initial denial was overturned and while the merger was not approved, but sent back to Aerocivil for reconsideration. To further complicate things, at least for Avianca as Viva’s suitor, Just this week, Chilean low-cost carrier Jetsmart submitted a competing offer for Viva that would overcome the market dominance objections raised by Aerocivil.

Viva said in a written statement: “Viva is taking advantage of this 90-day voluntary recovery process in order to restructure its debts through negotiation with its primary creditors allowing the airline to continue operating under sustainable conditions that guarantee the continuity of the company. This decision comes after six months of waiting for the definition of the alliance with Avianca, which if approved would allow us to continue in the low-cost aviation business through our link to another group of regionally important airlines, thereby ensuring the preservation of jobs, and strengthening our commitment to generating higher levels of connectivity in the country at a low cost by obtaining the required capital injection.”

Colombia’s “Proceso de Recuperación Empresarial” (PRE)

Created during the COVID-19 pandemic, Colombia’s “Business Recovery Process” is a mediated, non-judicial process mediated by reconciliation centers through any of Colombia’s regional chambers of commerce. Unlike in other countries, the chambers of commerce have an official function in Colombia, as the repository of articles of incorporation for the organization of business entities. In other words, when one registers a business in Colombia, it is done through the local Chamber of Commerce rather than at a government office such as state secretaries in the US or Companies House in the UK.

Details of Colombia’s PRE:

• Filed with the local Chamber of Commerce, not a judicial court
• Maximum duration of three months
• Facilitates debt renegotiation with creditors
• Suspends coercive collections such as repossessions, evictions & foreclosures
• Though mediated, has the force of law
• The debtor may ask for judicial validation, extending terms to all creditors, whether participants in the mediation or not

“Viva has taken this step due to the crisis it faces because of the effects of Covid 19 and the current macroeconomic factors that are public knowledge. Additionally, the company has not been able to access capital during the last nine months since it has not yet been possible to implement its integration with another airline, which is still pending authorization by the national government,” said the airline in a statement.

“After studying all the available alternatives to the current situation, we are entering this voluntary mediation process while we urgently wait for the decision by the authority on our alliance with Avianca. Just as we have adapted in the past, we are convinced that we will be able to overcome this situation for the good of all passengers who have benefited from the low-cost model in which we are experts.”

According to SIC, the fine is punishment for terminating orders on its app without delivering them, portions missing food, for having a web page that did not meet minimum requirements for contacting the firm with petitions or complaints, for not disclosing the company’s NIT (corporation registration number), for orders never delivered, delivered, late, or in poor condition.

KFC may appeal the decision. Finance Colombia has reached out to KFC but as of publication, the company has not responded. Should we receive a response, we will update this article.

Photo credit: Rusty Clark (Creative Commons License)

Dr. Mancilla was publicly known both for his outspoken stance against COVID mask and vaccine mandates, and for his side vocation as a house and electronic music DJ where he went by the moniker Sammy Dogg. He also ran a website called the Mancilla Natural Health Medical Center, though it appears to not have recently been updated. On the other hand, Mancilla frequently voiced his skepticism of COVID public health policy via Twitter, sometimes contradicting himself. The doctor said via Twitter that he treated himself with Hydroxychloroquine after being infected with COVID twice.

Tenía un récord en días que no usaba una mascarilla hasta que me la exigió el operador del Bus aquí en Ámsterdam ?

Apenas íbamos 7 personas pero el covid anda suelto como vaca loca ? pic.twitter.com/kv7m9ojSfG

— Dr.Sammy Mancilla ???? (@MDSAMMYMANCILLA) November 24, 2021

Last December, Mancilla was detained in Panamá where he was bought up on charges of violating public health laws. Prosecutors said they found medications stored in his residence in quantities beyond those legally permitted, though his defense attorney Alexis Sinclair explained that they were for distribution to the poor by the “La Resistencia” anti-vaccine-mandate group, according to Panamanian news outlet Critica.

Though Sinclair was able to secure Mancilla’s release shortly after Christmas, Panamanian authorities reportedly confiscated the doctor’s passport and prohibited him from traveling or posting on social media. His last Twitter post was December 21 of last year.

So far, Panamanian authorities have not announced arrests or progress in their investigation.

 

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