Miguel found something on VCrisis that I’d missed, a remarkable consultant report outlining the ownership structure of a string of state-owned companies controlled by the family of Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez along with an analysis of the potential of these entities for money-laundering.

The network of what the Chavez family controls, in food processing and other fields is striking and tangled. This explains a lot about why the Chavez government is so obsessed with food production, price controls, driving the private-sector to its knees and military control.

It’s not just a bid to let Castro take over, although that’s part of it, it’s a strong effort on the part of the Hugo Chavez clan to get rich and … steal Venezuela blind.

Miguel’s story is here.