COMPLAINT AND ANSWER (CASE 1:24-cv-02519-BAH) COMPLAINT Petitioner Luis Miguel Martinez Morales (“Petitioner” or “Martinez”), by and through his undersigned counsel, pursuant to 5 U.S.C §§ 555(e) and 706, hereby files this Complaint and petitions this Court to issue a Declaratory Judgment, or alternatively, a Writ of Mandamus compelling the United States Department of Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), OFAC Director Andrea Gacki, and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen to remove Martinez from the Specially Designated Nationals List (“SDN List”). As explained herein, Martinez’s continued status as a Specially Designated National, which subjects him to economic sanctions, is unlawful and has caused and continues to cause him severe harm.
ANSWER This paragraph sets forth Plaintiff’s characterization of this action and legal conclusions, to which no response is required.
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The Office of Foreign Assets Control is a federal agency within the United States Department of Treasury, located at 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20220. OFAC is responsible for administering and enforcing economic and trade sanctions against targeted foreign countries and regimes, terrorists, international narcotics traffickers, those engaged in activities related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and other threats to the national security, foreign policy or economy of the United States. One such mechanism for accomplishing this task is through the SDN List, which OFAC maintains. See 31 C.F.R. Part 583.
Admitted.
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Petitioner Luis Miguel Martinez Morales is a foreign national residing in Guatemala. Martinez is a former Guatemalan government employee, he was an Advisor in the Commission de la Juventud (2018-2019) and he was a Director of the Centro del Gobierno (2020).
Defendants lack knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about the truth of the allegations in this paragraph.
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Ms. Andrea Gacki is the Director of OFAC. She is being sued in her official capacity.
Defendants deny the allegations in the first sentence of this paragraph, and aver that Lisa Palluconi is the Acting Director of the Department of Treasury’s (“Treasury”) Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”). The allegations in the second sentence of this paragraph set forth Plaintiff’s characterization of this action, to which no response is required.
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The Honorable Janet Yellen is the Secretary of Treasury of the United States. She is being sued in her official capacity.
Defendants admit the allegations in the first sentence of this paragraph. The allegations in the second sentence of this paragraph set forth Plaintiff’s characterization of this action, to which no response is required.
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