Obra de Transmilenio en la carrera 13 A con calle 26

The Nule Group corruption scandal ( Spanish: ''Carrusel de la Contratación'' = "Contract Carousel") is a case of

political corruption Political corruption is the use of powers by government officials or their network contacts for illegitimate private gain. Forms of corruption vary, but can include bribery, lobbying, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, parochialism, patronage, in ...

which took place in the city of

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

during the administration of former mayor Samuel Moreno Rojas of the ''

Polo Democrático Alternativo The Alternative Democratic Pole ( Spanish: ''Polo Democrático Alternativo'' or PDA) is a left-wing political party in Colombia. It was founded as a political alliance of the Independent Democratic Pole (PDI) and the Democratic Alternative (AD ...

'' party in 2010. The controversy exploded on June 25 of that year when secret recordings surfaced of the multimillion-dollar commission negotiations between Germán Olano, a former Colombian congressman, and construction mogul Miguel Nule Velilla, whose company, the Nule Group, handled many Bogotá public works contracts. This scandal eventually led to many at the top of the Nule Group pleading guilty to embezzling millions of dollars meant for the construction of the Transmilenio public transport system and of roads in the city. Guido, Manuel and Miguel Nule were charged with embezzlement, bribery and conspiracy. At a pretrial hearing Miguel said they had paid a 6% commission to the mayor and to Senator

Iván Moreno Rojas Ivan () is a Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John) from Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. The earliest person known to bear the name was Bulgar ...

, and called it extortion. Subsequent investigations revealed further corruption and several politicians, businessmen, leaders of the Institute of Urban Development and even the mayor himself were implicated. Mayor Moreno was consequently suspended from office in 2011 and has now been formally accused of corruption, bribery, embezzlement by appropriation, and extortion. The national government lost nearly one trillion Colombian pesos (roughly $521 million dollars) as a result of the crime. Olano surrendered to Colombian authorities on his return from Miami in May 2011. The corruption scandal is considered one of the biggest in recent Colombian history.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Contract Carousel (Carrusel de la contratacion) 2010 in Colombia

Corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...