DMG | David Murcia Guzman | Panama Captures Boss of Colombian Financial Scheme
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DMG | David Murcia Guzman | Panama Captures Boss of Colombian Financial Scheme
BOGOTA, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Panama captured and extradited the accused boss of a Colombian financial pyramid scheme that threatens investors with millions of dollars in losses, Colombian police said on Thursday. The scheme is one of several in a growing financial scandal that has sparked riots as mostly poor investors try to recover their savings and analysts warn about the impact on Colombia's already slowing economy. David Murcia, head of financial agency DMG, was caught in Panama as he tried to flee into Costa Rica. He was extradited to Colombia, where he and his directors face charges including money laundering and other financial crimes, police said. "After such a massive fraud against thousands of our countrymen, this is a man who is a risk and we will keep him under very tight security," national police commander Gen. Oscar Naranjo told local radio. President Alvaro Uribe's government has said it will help victims recover their losses and has declared a state of emergency over the crisis. Thousands have lost their savings on scams that promised high interest rates, real estate deals and debit cards to buy consumer goods. Authorities are probing possible links between the finance agencies and Colombia's multibillion-dollar cocaine trade. An attorney for DMG has said the company's managers were innocent and were ready to cooperate with the investigation. Thousands of DMG depositors took to the streets this week to protest a decision by Uribe to shut the stores. At least two people were killed in riots last week when the bosses of other companies, which had promised up to 150 percent interest, started shutting their doors and disappearing with cash. David Murcia Guzman was president of the DMG Group, whose collapse led to street protests across the country by investors, in which two people died. Mr Murcia Guzman faces charges including money-laundering and illicit enrichment. He denies the allegations. DMG had promised investors returns of up to 150% a month on their deposits. On Wednesday, Colombia's attorney general said prosecutors had evidence that the company was also a front for money-laundering. Rapid ascent The rise of Mr Murcia Guzman has been spectacular, says the BBC's Jeremy McDermott in Colombia. Protests in several Colombian cities left at least two people dead In just a couple of years, he went from being a poor cameraman's assistant to the head of DMG, a multi-million dollar business. His fall looks like it will be even quicker, our correspondent says. The 28-year-old was extradited to Colombia to face accusations that his business was a pyramid scheme that duped at least 200,000 Colombians out of their life savings. The irony is that DMG had not shut its doors to investors and was continuing to honour its obligations. Unlike other schemes, which had shut up shop and escaped with the money collected, DMG was still operating until the police closed its 60 branches across Colombia. Venezuela and Ecuadorian authorities have followed suit by shutting offices in their respective countries. Indeed, our correspondent adds, there have been protests against the government by DMG investors who insist that the company is legitimate and that the government has now forced its collapse. Investigations by the Colombian authorities show that DMG was the most sophisticated scheme of all the pyramids. Police are also investigating leads that suggest DMG received money not only from drugs-traffickers but Marxist rebels and right-wing paramilitaries involved in Colombia's four-decade old civil conflict.
YouTube | November 20, 2008
