The former CEO of California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) will plead guilty to charges pertaining to his involvement in a “pay-to-play” scheme five years ago.
Both Buenrostro and Villalobos were charged last year with conspiracy to creating “fraudulent investor disclosure letters in order to satisfy Apollo’s record-keeping obligations…”
Federico Buenrostro, who was chief of the largest US public pension fund from 2002 to 2008, said he plans to strike a plea agreement with prosecutors next week and testify against co-defendant Alfred Villalobos, according to his lawyer.
Villalobos, a former CalPERS board member, was a placement agent for Apollo Global Management at the time of the crime.
Both Buenrostro and Villalobos were charged last year with conspiracy to creating “fraudulent investor disclosure letters in order to satisfy Apollo’s record-keeping obligations under the securities laws and regulations and to ensure [Villalobos’ firm’s] receipt of commission fees from Apollo,” the indictment papers said.
Through the counterfeit letters, Villalobos received about $14 million from Apollo for handling a $3 billion investment by CalPERS from 2008 and 2009, according to the indictment.
In addition, Buenrostro and Villalobos were charged with conspiracy to defraud the US, engaging in a false scheme against the US, and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.
In a statement, CalPERS said it was looking forward to the “closure of these cases at the appropriate time in the due course of the justice system. With a continued focus on integrity and transparency, CalPERS is committed to serving our 1.7 million members who serve California every day of their careers.”
Buenrostro will present his plea agreement at a July 11 hearing.
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