Woman facing federal charges along with ex-Miami Congressman David Rivera out on a $200,000 bond

MIAMI — The co-defendant who along with former U.S. Rep. David Rivera is accused of acting as an unregistered agent of Venezuela appeared Thursday in federal court where she was formally arraigned.

Esther Nufher is out on a $200,000 bond.  

On Thursday, US Magistrate Lauren Louis told Nuhfer she faces four federal criminal counts, including conspiracy to commit money laundering, failing to register as a foreign agent, money laundering and transactions using proceeds of criminal activity. 

The judge also ordered that she surrender her passport, along with that of her husband, Alex Henriquez. Additionally, they were warned they can not sell any property acquired by both.

A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida indicted Nuther and Rivera last month in connection with allegations that the pair acted as an unregistered agent of Venezuela while Rivera was running for office as a state lawmaker. 

The federal government has accused Nuther and Rivera of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA, by lobbying politicians and others for the normalization of relations with Venezuela in 2017, which included working on a legal dispute with a US oil company and against sanctions. 

According to the indictment, the two defendants allegedly never notified the US government or the officials with whom they met that they were being paid by Venezuela, concealing the payments. 

Investigators have accused the two of agreeing to a $50 million contract to work on Venezuela’s behalf in order to resolve the oil company’s legal dispute by engaging an unnamed Texas congressman.

Later in 2017, Rivera is accused of refocusing his lobbying efforts on a WH adviser and a Florida Senator to further Maduro’s goal of normalizing relations with the US.