Juan Francisco Ramirez, the former chairman of Nodus International Bank in Puerto Rico, has pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme that resulted in the fraudulent diversion of more than $13.6 million from the bank. The actions led to the collapse of Nodus International Bank in 2023.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division stated, “The defendant abused his position as Chairman of the board of directors to fraudulently divert funds from the bank that he had been entrusted to run, resulting in the bank’s collapse. The Criminal Division is committed to investigating and prosecuting white-collar fraudsters, no matter how lofty their position, to ensure their crimes do not pay.”
Court documents show that Ramirez, 60, from Miami, Florida, worked with others to secretly benefit from investments and loans using Nodus funds. He and a co-conspirator hid these transactions from other board members and executives at Nodus as well as from Puerto Rico’s Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions (OCIF). These actions violated both Puerto Rican law and internal policies regarding insider transactions.
Between 2017 and 2023, Ramirez arranged for over $11 million of Nodus’s money to be invested in a Miami-based lender so those funds could then be loaned back to himself and a co-conspirator. The transactions were disguised as legitimate investments by having Nodus make sham investments in the lending entity.
From January 2018 through September 2021, Ramirez also persuaded Nodus’s board and comptroller to purchase at least 47 promissory notes worth about $25.3 million from a finance company he jointly owned with his co-conspirator. While these notes claimed to fund loans for legitimate individuals or businesses, Ramirez and his associate instead used proceeds for personal expenses such as third-party investments, mortgage payments, and credit card bills.
In March 2023, after OCIF notified Nodus it would be placed into liquidation—and without authorization—Ramirez caused Nodus to buy a $26 million loan portfolio from his Miami-based finance company. Most loans in this portfolio were delinquent or uncollateralized. This move allowed Ramirez's company relief from its debt obligations arising out of previous promissory note sales to Nodus.
As part of his plea agreement, Ramirez will forfeit at least $13.6 million representing proceeds obtained through the conspiracy.
Ramirez admitted guilt on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He faces up to 20 years in prison; sentencing will be determined by a federal district court judge considering relevant guidelines and statutory factors.
The IRS Criminal Investigation division led the investigation into this case. Prosecution is being handled by Trial Attorneys Javier Urbina and Samir Paul from the Justice Department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS), Bank Integrity Unit, along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Felipe Plechac-Diaz for the Southern District of Florida.
