Swiss arrest two executives in alleged oil corruption case

Prosecutors in Switzerland have made two arrests after opening a criminal investigation into a Geneva-based consulting firm that allegedly served as a conduit for bribes between Venezuela’s state oil company and some of its biggest clients.

A person familiar with the case said Monday that the Helsinge Inc. executives were arrested in recent days following allegations contained in a complaint filed by PDVSA, the Venezuelan state oil company. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

The Geneva public prosecutor’s office confirmed the probe against unspecified Helsinge executives on suspicion of corruption of foreign officials and money-laundering, but declined to comment further.

Helsinge was set up 14 years ago in Panama, with offices in Miami, Geneva and the English Channel island of Jersey, and later became the conduit by which some of PDVSA’s biggest clients and suppliers allegedly obtained insider information on its tenders for oil exports and purchases of light crude.