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U.S. sends most-wanted banker Peirano to Uruguay
MIAMI (Reuters) - The United States has extradited a fugitive banker to Uruguay for trial on charges he embezzled more than $800 million, contributing to a financial panic that spread through several South American countries in 2002, federal agents said on Friday.
U.S. marshals handed over Juan Peirano Basso to Uruguayan Interpol agents, who escorted him on a flight from Miami to Montevideo on Wednesday, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement service said.
Peirano was chief executive of the Velox Group of banks in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and the Cayman Islands and is accused of embezzling more than $800 million from various financial institutions.
"The government of Uruguay branded Peirano as the country's most wanted fugitive as a result of his actions, which are believed to have caused the collapse of the Uruguayan economy and to have caused the South American financial crisis of 2002," the Immigration and Customs Enforcement service said.
The banking group, which Peirano ran with his three brothers, collapsed after Argentina's financial meltdown in 2001, starting a run on deposits and a panic that spread to Uruguay.
Peirano had dual citizenship in Uruguay and Italy and was a legal resident of the United States when he was arrested in the Miami area in 2006.
"The hard work and perseverance of the agents involved in this complex investigation now ensures this individual will face justice for his alleged crimes," said Steven Kleppe, the U.S. customs agency's attache in Buenos Aires.
(Reporting by Jane Sutton; Editing by Michael Christie and Bill Trott)
