Colombian oil heavyweight caught in Trump administration’s latest visa sweep

The United States has revoked the visa of Ricardo Roa, former head of Colombia’s state-owned oil company Ecopetrol, as Washington expands restrictions targeting officials and other prominent figures accused of corruption or links to narcotrafficking in Latin America.

Roa is among 21 Colombians affected by the latest measures announced on Thursday, October 22, while dozens of people in Bolivia have also been targeted under the US campaign.

The restrictions form part of the administration of President Donald Trump’s broader efforts to combat corruption and drug trafficking across the region, with Washington using visa controls to restrict entry by individuals it says undermine democratic institutions.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the department was expanding its campaign against corruption and narcotrafficking in the Western Hemisphere.

Roa’s inclusion comes amid legal investigations in Colombia linked to his time at Ecopetrol and his role in the 2022 presidential campaign of former president Gustavo Petro.

Colombian prosecutors have pursued a case involving alleged influence peddling connected to the purchase of an apartment. He has also faced scrutiny over alleged violations of campaign-financing limits during the election that brought Petro to power.

Roa, who previously served as Ecopetrol’s president, left the position after the company’s board moved against him in April amid the investigations.

The US visa decision is an administrative restriction and does not, by itself, establish criminal guilt in the cases being investigated in Colombia.

Other Colombians affected include Sincelejo Mayor Yahir Acuña, senator Wadith Manzur and congressional representative Karen Manrique, according to reports on the latest action.

The measures also extend to Bolivia, where the US has targeted officials and other individuals as part of its efforts to address alleged corruption and narcotrafficking links. The latest actions add to restrictions imposed on people in the country in September.

Washington announced its visa-restriction policy in September, saying it would apply to foreign nationals and their immediate family members accused of undermining democratically elected governments through corruption or narcotrafficking.

The policy allows the US government to restrict visas under provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act where the entry of a foreign national could have potentially serious adverse consequences for US foreign policy.

Roa, a former leader of one of Colombia’s most important state-owned companies, is among the high-profile figures caught up in Washington’s expanding visa restrictions as investigations into alleged wrongdoing continue in his home country.