Hugo Chavez - Where'd He Supposedly Get the 2 Billion $$ In Personal Wealth?

Oh ... the Chavez fans will hate this ...
2 Billion $$ in personal wealth.
IF TRUE ... so where'd he get the 2 Billion $$ in Personal Wealth?
Was his family rich before he took over Venezuela?
Or did he pull an Arafat and skim some off the top, stealing from the people?
Or is this just a bunch of nonsense made up by his detractors??

This story is being picked up on different news sites but most come back to this original story -

Celebrity Net Worth

Hugo Chavez net worth: Hugo Chavez was a Venezuelan politician who had a net worth of $1 billion at the time of his death on March 5th 2013. A 2010 report from Criminal Justice International Associates (CJIA), a global risk assessment and threat mitigation firm estimated that the Chavez family assets totaled between $1 and $2 billion USD. The vast majority of these assets are oil related and were controlled by Hugo himself prior to his death. The head of the CJIA, Jerry Brewer, asserted that since Hugo's rise to power in 1999, the extended family has amassed its fortune through both legal and illegal methods. Brewer further estimates that the Chavez family and hundreds of other criminal organization have "subtracted $100 billion out of the nearly $1 trillion in oil income made by PDVSA (Venezuela's state controlled oil company), since 1999."

News From Venezuela

Criminal Justice International Associates (CJIA), a risk assessment and global analysis firm in Miami, estimated in a recent report that the Chávez Frías family in Venezuela has “amassed a fortune” similar to that of the Castro brothers in Cuba. According to Jerry Brewer, president of CJIA, “the personal fortune of the Castro brothers has been estimated at a combined value of around $2 billion.” “The Chávez Frías family in Venezuela has amassed a fortune of a similar scale since the arrival of Chávez to the presidency in 1999,” said Brewer in an analysis published in their website.

American Thinker - Chavez Billionaire Status

Contacto - Fluctuating Fortunes for Chavez

reply to post by FlyersFan


When you single handedly control all the levers of power in a nation, its not too difficult to siphon off a bit here and bit there to leave yourself a golden parachute when the day comes you are run out of office. It happened with Pinochet and the Castro brothers and Chavez certainly seemed like he was cut from the same cloth.

He has to be rich to pay for a compaign, A poor man can't become a president anymore. So he had to have that money before he even became a president, It's probably a peronsal wealth, Nothing to do with stealing etc. And who knows, All presidents around the world try to steal a small and unnoticeable amount by signing docs. You can't blame him, I know he was anti-US, Which is funny.

Yeah, after over a week of hearing the Chavez fan club, I wondered myself when I saw this....what will those capitalist haters think of the ultimate capitalist (in hypocrisy) stashing billions away for his own personal fortune while his people fought over food shortages in the Capital city? A real man of the people.

Indeed... He was a master of the political world, wasn't he? Master for himself, anyway..... 2 Billion ways to prove it.

(Of course, for those keeping up on it, this is small change compared to the personal corruption in the higher levels of the Chinese Communist Party at the moment... Seems the Socialist bunch are a whole lot more ...personal wealth minded..then they let on. Do as I command, not as I do, right?)

Originally posted by Misbah
It's probably a peronsal wealth, Nothing to do with stealing etc.

According to the source .. (as I said, I have no idea how accurate it is) .. the wealth was made after he became president. All in the past 10 years or so.

I know he was anti-US, Which is funny.

Arafat was anti-US and he stole billions from the Palestinians.
It would be sadly ironic if Chavez did the same to the people of Venezuela.

Human Rights Watch - Venezuela
According to this article, it is easy to see how someone with as much power as Chavez could easily skim a few billion $$ off the top for himself. The amount of power he gathered to himself and his government is staggering.

100 reporters - Venezuelas Vanishing Billions

Nearly $30 billion is missing from a Venezuelan national development fund controlled by President Hugo Chávez, who appears to have diverted some of the missing money to his political allies in other countries, while much of the rest remains unaccounted for.

The money came from a $69.4 billion fund for development aid, known as Fonden, which is designed to take public money, largely from Venezuela’s state-run oil company and its Central Bank, and use it on domestic development projects such as highways, schools, factories and hospitals.

For years in Venezuela, critics of the president have nicknamed Fonden “Chávez’s slush fund.” Information only now becoming public shows that is not far off the mark: El Fondo de Desarrollo Nacional, as it is formally known, operates outside the Venezuelan National Assembly’s budget process and largely beyond public scrutiny, answerable only to a board of directors and to Chávez himself.

Hugo was a fat piece of crap politician that was just like any other dirtbag tyrant.

The love for this guy by ignorant people is astounding. I will state that I agree on some things he did, but he was mostly a selfish dictator.

With the demonizing of democracy, Hugo was a damned revolutionary hero...

reply to post by FlyersFan

Meh, doesnt surprise me.

Here politicians enter office worth a $100k. They retire worth millions.

Though I would guess its slightly easier to fleece the government in other countries.

Another example (along with the Kim family dynasty in North Korea) of why Communism/Socialism is a scam as practically applied.

Originally posted by FlyersFan
Oh ... the Chavez fans will hate this ...

2 Billion $$ in personal wealth.
IF TRUE ... so where'd he get the 2 Billion $$ in Personal Wealth?
Was his family rich before he took over Venezuela?
Or did he pull an Arafat and skim some off the top, stealing from the people?
Or is this just a bunch of nonsense made up by his detractors??

same place that Mayor Bloomberg got his wealth from.

Originally posted by CosmicCitizen
Another example (along with the Kim family dynasty in North Korea) of why Communism/Socialism is a scam as practically applied.

edit on 6-3-2013 by CosmicCitizen because: (no reason given)

why do you lump communism with socialism? that is a skewered perception.

Canada is a social democracy with a conservative government. nothing commie about us.

reply to post by FlyersFan


Creaming off the oil revenues. Seriously, what did people expect him to do? Same as everyone else in such a position of power - he feathered his nest.

Meanwhile, the rest of the world's leaders are walking around in handmade sandals, living in sugar shacks, eating Kraft Dinner, giving sermons on the mount, and wearing a halo over their heads....

I'd be curious to find out what the net worth is of all the other world leaders, past and present... Anyone know what the net worth of Bush Sr and Bush Jr was before and after their presidencies ?

Oh, that's right. I forgot how non-corrupt our saintly government leaders are...
Puhlease.

Good gawd man, our politicians are guilty of far worse crimes than just skimming off the top.

typical, both enemies of the U.S.A.............

So terribly cheap.

Originally posted by FlyersFan
Oh ... the Chavez fans will hate this ...

2 Billion $$ in personal wealth.
IF TRUE ... so where'd he get the 2 Billion $$ in Personal Wealth?
Was his family rich before he took over Venezuela?
Or did he pull an Arafat and skim some off the top, stealing from the people?
Or is this just a bunch of nonsense made up by his detractors??

This story is being picked up on different news sites but most come back to this original story -

Celebrity Net Worth

Hugo Chavez net worth: Hugo Chavez was a Venezuelan politician who had a net worth of $1 billion at the time of his death on March 5th 2013. A 2010 report from Criminal Justice International Associates (CJIA), a global risk assessment and threat mitigation firm estimated that the Chavez family assets totaled between $1 and $2 billion USD. The vast majority of these assets are oil related and were controlled by Hugo himself prior to his death. The head of the CJIA, Jerry Brewer, asserted that since Hugo's rise to power in 1999, the extended family has amassed its fortune through both legal and illegal methods. Brewer further estimates that the Chavez family and hundreds of other criminal organization have "subtracted $100 billion out of the nearly $1 trillion in oil income made by PDVSA (Venezuela's state controlled oil company), since 1999."

News From Venezuela

Criminal Justice International Associates (CJIA), a risk assessment and global analysis firm in Miami, estimated in a recent report that the Chávez Frías family in Venezuela has “amassed a fortune” similar to that of the Castro brothers in Cuba. According to Jerry Brewer, president of CJIA, “the personal fortune of the Castro brothers has been estimated at a combined value of around $2 billion.” “The Chávez Frías family in Venezuela has amassed a fortune of a similar scale since the arrival of Chávez to the presidency in 1999,” said Brewer in an analysis published in their website.

American Thinker - Chavez Billionaire Status

Contacto - Fluctuating Fortunes for Chavez

edit on 3/6/2013 by FlyersFan because: fixed quote

He is a PCO . . . Paid Controlled Opposition.

Just like Yasser Arafat. Just like Ron Paul.

And I'm sure he was also skimming off the top. The question is . . . how much intel was he able to gather on his "allies" and was the info moving in both directions or just one? It's like that tag line from the old Tootsie Roll Lollipop commercial . . .

After all . . . this is a conspiracy site, no?

I'm not all that concerned with how he got his money, all politicians are crooks anyway.

I would just like to pose the question:

How much good did it do him to get all that money and what is he going to do with it now?

Originally posted by CranialSponge
Oh, that's right. I forgot how non-corrupt our saintly government leaders are...
Puhlease.

Puhlease ... this thread isn't about them. If you want to start a thread on them .. go ahead. But deflection attempts like that are pretty see through ...

Good gawd man, our politicians are guilty of far worse crimes than just skimming off the top.

Allegedly stealing 2 Billion $$ from the Venezuelan people .. (in addition to the other things he did like taking away freedom of the press, etc etc) .. isn't exactly a small thing. Ya' know?

reply to post by FlyersFan


Again with the deflection from the lefty, socialists.

Earning money and taking it are 2 different things.

He touted himself being all about the people, but he took over private property ie businesses, stole the money and passed it around to his fellow dictator buddies.

Some people will believe anything, just because it feeds their capitalistic American hatred.

He gave billions to the Castro's etc and made everyone in Venezuela equal, equally poor.

nationalize the oil industry

sit on top of the gov't

viola, a billion dollars

Originally posted by CranialSponge
Meanwhile, the rest of the world's leaders are walking around in handmade sandals, living in sugar shacks, eating Kraft Dinner, giving sermons on the mount, and wearing a halo over their heads....

I'd be curious to find out what the net worth is of all the other world leaders, past and present... Anyone know what the net worth of Bush Sr and Bush Jr was before and after their presidencies ?

Oh, that's right. I forgot how non-corrupt our saintly government leaders are...
Puhlease.

Good gawd man, our politicians are guilty of far worse crimes than just skimming off the top.

thats not the point though he was supposed to be such a rebel who was sticking it to the powers and helping out the poor yet he sure seemed to be hogging a whole lot of wealth he could have redistributed to the impoverished. Gee why does that just so happen to be the same story with just about every communist leader there is?

They preach about helping out the poor man yet they themselves are living large in extravagant mansions and they preach for equality and fairness yet silence opposition . People merely think because chavez stood up to our corrupt POS here he is a good guy but the reality is he was a turd like them just in a slightly different shade of brown.