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Chavez and Fernandez. Photo via Getty Images.
It took seven days of deliberation, but Miami’s latest foray into international politics via the federal court system ended today with a guilty verdict in the “Suitcase Trial.”
The case, which you can read about here, hinged on accusations that Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez funneled $800,000 in cash to ally Cristina Fernandez, president of Argentina, through a Miami businessman, who unwisely tried to fly the cash into Buenos Aires inside his luggage.
The guilty verdict is a late victory for the anti-Chávez Bushies, and will surely further complicate U.S.-Venezuela relations for the next administration, whoever that may be. Chavez, apparently, hopes it’s Obama.
