A 17 year old girl stole $300,000, along with €40,000 and three Rolex watches from Central Bank president Nelson Merentes, who has not reported the theft. Whether you call that much money lying around petty cash or bug-out moolah, Merentes doesn’t want to answer questions.
The story came to light after Merentes, age 61, allegedly hired a private detective to find out who took the cash, according to Runrunes (link in Spanish).
As it turns out, 17 year old Hyser Betancourt was one of a long string of young girlfriends that, according to journalist Manuel Isidro Molina, include the current Miss Venezuela Mariana Jimenez.
Molina reports that Merentes paid Osmel Souza (president of the Miss Venezuela pageant) $500,000 to secure the Miss Universe title for Mariana Jimenez, but she did not win.
For now, Betancourt says her cousin is the one who took the money, Betancourt and her mom are working Instagram for all it’s worth wanting to be known as the Venezuelan Kardashians, and Merentes is not talking.
The United Nations General Assembly has identified Venezuela among nine countries that are not allowed to vote in the current 70th Session because of arrears in paying their dues.
But look at the bright side: Hugo Chavez’s daughter Maria Gabriela Chavez, is now just another billionaire in the Big Apple and unable to vote in the Security Council.
That’s another day in the Bolivarian Revolution.
