The military contractor known as “Fat Leonard,” who fled house arrest in San Diego more than a year ago only to be caught in Venezuela, is among several prisoners who have been released by President Nicolás Maduro as part of a prisoner swap, the White House announced Wednesday.
The U.S. on Wednesday released Maduro ally Alex Saab — the main bargaining chip in talks negotiating such a trade — and Maduro released 36 prisoners in exchange.
President Joe Biden said in a statement that the exchange includes 10 Americans who have been detained in Venezuela — six of whom were “wrongly detained” — as well as Leonard Glenn Francis, the Singapore-based contractor prosecuted in San Diego as the mastermind behind the U.S. Navy’s worst corruption scandal in modern history.
Francis “was extradited from Venezuela so that he will face justice for crimes he committed against the U.S. Government and the American people,” Biden said.
The whereabouts of Francis, nicknamed for his girth, were not immediately known Wednesday.
The U.S. has been negotiating for the release of Francis, a Malaysian citizen, as well as several Americans jailed there, including two former Green Berets, Luke Denman and Airan Berry, who were involved in an attempt to oust Maduro in 2019. Also detained were Eyvin Hernandez, Jerrel Kenemore and Joseph Cristella, who are accused of entering the country illegally from Colombia. More recently, Venezuela arrested Savoi Wright, a 38-year-old California businessman.
Saab, who was arrested on a U.S. warrant for money laundering in 2020 and being prosecuted in Miami, has long been at the center of those talks.
The deal comes just weeks after the U.S. agreed to temporarily suspend some sanctions against Venezuela after Maduro’s socialist government and a faction of its opposition formally resolved to work together on a series of basic conditions for the next presidential election.
“We are ensuring that the Venezuelan regime meets its commitments,” Biden said. “They have announced an electoral roadmap — agreed to by opposition parties — for competitive Presidential elections in 2024. This a positive and important step forward.”
Maduro also released 20 political prisoners as part of the deal, on top of five previously released, Biden confirmed.
“We will continue to monitor this closely and take appropriate action if needed,” he said. “We stand in support of democracy in Venezuela and the aspirations of the Venezuelan people.”
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego referred questions about the prisoner exchange to the White House.
Francis has been in Venezuela since September 2022.
He pleaded guilty in San Diego in 2015 to corruption charges related to his wide-ranging scheme to bribe Navy officials and overcharge the military for his company’s services, but he has avoided sentencing in the case for years. He escaped from the luxurious Carmel Valley-area rental home on Sept. 4, 2022, cutting off his GPS anklet and fleeing across the U.S.-Mexico border just weeks before his sentencing date.
He was caught by Interpol in Venezuela 16 days later, before he could fly to his final destination, Russia. It is unclear what kind of custodial circumstances he has faced in Venezuela.
His release from Venezuela notches a win for the U.S. government, just as its prosecution of other Navy officers in the case continues to show cracks.
On Monday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office asked a San Diego federal judge to dismiss charges entirely against former Navy Cmdr. Stephen Shedd, who pleaded guilty to two bribery charges and testified against other officers at trial last year. Four of those officers were convicted by a jury. But after the U.S. Attorney’s Office admitted to “serious issues” in the case, and after a judge concluded that one prosecutor had committed “flagrant misconduct,” the four were allowed to plead guilty to misdemeanors and avoid any prison time.
At a hearing Wednesday to formalize the dismissal request, prosecutors also planned to request that an additional four officers who previously pleaded guilty to felonies be sentenced on reduced misdemeanor charges.
But U.S. District Judge Janis Sammartino refused to grant the requests at this time, admonishing prosecutors for failing to document their reasons for such a dramatic turn. “This can only be done with fair and just reason,” Sammartino said.
Another hearing has been set for March.
As for Francis, how much prison time — if any — that he might receive was wildly speculated before his escape. He faced up to 25 years behind bars according to his plea agreement. But in the years following, he cooperated heavily with the continuing investigation and prosecution of other Navy officials. He was expected to be the star witness at last year’s trial but, for unknown reasons, was never called by prosecutors.
With his escape, the plea deal could be scrapped entirely upon his return to face sentencing, opening him up to more exposure on his original charges as well as new charges related to his flight.
It is unlikely he will be afforded the same house-arrest scenario as before, which had been granted previously due to reported health issues.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
