An official report from Colombia’s Financial Information and Analysis Unit (UIAF) revealed that far-left President Gustavo Petro spent money at strip clubs and international luxury brand stores in recent years, Colombian outlets reported Tuesday.
According to Petro, his bank accounts and purchase records “contradict” President Donald Trump’s drug trafficker accusations against him.
The newspaper El Colombiano explained that the UIAF, a Colombian anti-money-laundering financial control entity, disclosed Petro’s personal banking movements at the request of the Colombian president. On Monday, Petro, in a lengthy social media rant, called for the UIAF to disclose his bank statements in response to President Donald Trump’s “rudeness” of imposing sanctions on him and his family.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on Gustavo Petro in October for having engaged in, or attempted to engage in, “activities or transactions that have materially contributed to, or pose a significant risk of materially contributing to, the international proliferation of illicit drugs or their means of production.” Petro’s wife Veronica Alcocer and son Nicolas Petro Burgos were also sanctioned by OFAC.
Days before OFAC’s announcement, President Trump accused Petro of being an “illegal drug leader.” In response, Petro accused Trump of being “rude and ignorant.”
UIAF disclosed the requested financial information on Tuesday — the agency, however, reportedly detailed that the information only represents the existence of financial translations, stressing that “it is not possible to conclude whether these are financially associated with criminal acts or intentions to commit them, which is why the information presented here must be verified through the intelligence cycle of the receiving agency.”
Caracol Radio, citing the report, explained that Petro holds 12 different bank accounts, but most of his movements in the past years come from two bank accounts, one in Scotiabank Colpatria, and one in BBVA. According to El Colombiano, the 30-page report covers Petro’s banking movements from 2023 to June 2025, and reportedly does not include 2022, the year when Petro took office, nor any prior year. The pages contain records of transactions of various nature such as payroll transfers; payments for a mortgage in Chía, Cundinamarca; foreign currency purchases; ATM withdrawals; and payments for private medical services.
The report also includes several references to purchases made by Petro at U.S. and European luxury stores, listing transactions at Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, El Corte Inglés, Gucci, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Casa dei Tessuti, and La Rinascente. The reports also contain entries for purchases made at Apple, H&M, Zara, and Adidas stores.
The most controversial entry, El Colombiano stressed, is a financial transaction at Ménage Strip Club in Lisbon, Portugal.
“The Ménage Strip Club promotes its ‘most attractive girls’ on its website, who ‘are ready to give you an unforgettable experience, satisfying all your dreams and desires,’” El Colombiano wrote.
Petro reportedly spent money at the Lisbon strip club in May 2023. He officially visited Portugal between May 6-7, 2023, coming from a three-day official visit to Spain. During his stay in Portugal, Petro was reportedly accompanied by his former foreign minister, Alvaro Leyva. In April, Leyva published a letter accusing Petro of allegedly suffering from drug addiction problems. The former Foreign Minister expanded upon his accusations in May and ratified the accusation at the Colombian Congress in September.
“The big question is: Can you prove that my expenses exceed my salary and my income from royalties from my book?” Petro asked Noticias RCN through social media early Wednesday morning. “The president of your country, gentlemen of Noticias RCN, is accused of being a drug lord, according to the U.S. president, and, as a result, is added to the OFAC list, do you see anything in my accounts that proves what President Trump says?”
“Don’t you think it’s serious that my bank accounts and transactions contradict President Trump’s assessment of a president democratically elected by the Colombian people? Is it possible for a Colombian drug lord to have been paying for his house for 14 years to the bank and not have any other properties?” he continued asking. “Don’t you think it’s strange that he only spends what he earns in his salary? Don’t you think that my transactions over the years and in all my accounts show neither corruption nor drug trafficking?”
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
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