One day following the incorporation of the Nicaragua Human Rights and Anticorruption Act of 2018 into the Nicaragua Sanctions Regulations, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury designated Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega’s son and a close associate, along with two companies by them. The designations of Juan Carlos Ortega Murillo, Jose Jorge Mojica Mejia, Difuso Comunicaciones S.A. and Mundo Digital S.A. pursuant to Executive Order 13851, result from their alleged involvement in deceptive practices and corruption in support of the Ortega regime. Juan Ortega manages Difuso Comunicaciones, a public relations and advertising company, and Jose Mojica is alleged to have created shell companies in order to launder money for the Nicaraguan president, his family and close associates; both men, according to OFAC, have participated in the misappropriation of public assets or the expropriation of private assets, corruption and bribery.
Following these designations, US property of the designated individuals and entities is blocked, and dealings by US persons involving such property and its owners are generally prohibited.