Venezuela's Maduro ally Saab pleads not guilty to U.S. money laundering charge

FILE PHOTO: Alex Saab Moran is seen in a booking photograph available to Reuters on October 17, 2021. Broward County Sheriff's Office/Handout via REUTERS

MIAMI (Reuters) - Alex Saab, an ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, has pleaded not guilty to a U.S. charge of conspiring to launder money, according to a court document filed on Monday, in a case that has strained already frayed relations between Washington and Caracas.

U.S. prosecutors accuse Saab, a Colombia-born businessman and dealmaker for Maduro's government, siphoned around $350 million out of Venezuela via the United States as part of a bribery scheme linked to Venezuela's state-controlled exchange rate.