US Wants Federal Charges in PDVSA Foreign Bribery Case Revived

Federal prosecutors urged the Fifth Circuit to revive charges against a Portuguese and Swiss citizen accused of participating in a scheme to bribe Petróleos de Venezuela SA officials.

The government’s appeal, filed Wednesday, follows the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas’ dismissal, with prejudice, of charges against Paulo Jorge Da Costa Casqueiro Murta in May, citing violations of the Speedy Trial Act and the Sixth Amendment’s speedy trial clause.

The government argues that, in finding a Speedy Trial Act violation, the district court failed to properly account for days when a motion was pending or under advisement, ...