A fourth US citizen has been arrested In Venezuela According to the country’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, the case has been registered in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro.
Cabello, speaking to the National Assembly, said the citizen (whose name was not disclosed) was detained in the capital Caracas on Tuesday while he was taking pictures of electricity and oil industry infrastructure as well as military units. Members of the National Assembly praised the detention.
“Those who try to mess with Venezuela, we will eliminate them, no matter what their name is,” Cabello said. “This is not the first time they have come to Venezuela.”
Biden administration imposes sanctions against ‘friends’ of Venezuelan President Maduro
A fourth US citizen has been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro, according to Venezuela’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello. Maduro is pictured addressing government loyalists gathered at the presidential palace in support of his re-election, a month after the presidential election, in Caracas, Venezuela, on August 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
A state Department The spokesperson told Fox News Digital that he was aware of unconfirmed reports of another arrest in Venezuela but was unable to comment further.
The State Department says its ability to provide assistance to US citizens in Venezuela is severely limited and it is working diligently to obtain additional information.
Relations between the US and Venezuela have been frosty in recent times, with the Biden administration easing sanctions on its oil industry and other sectors through the end of 2023, but by April 2024 the administration had rolled back most of the sanctions relaxations due to anti-democratic actions by Maduro officials, including blocking opposition primary winner Maria Corina Machado from running. Earlier this year, the US has taken several steps to improve its relations with Venezuela. stopped accepting flights of migrants Deported from the US and Mexico.
The arrests come just days after Cabello said that three Americans, two Spaniards and a Czech citizen had been detained for allegedly trying to assassinate Maduro and overthrow the Venezuelan government, Reuters reports.
The Associated Press identified the US soldier as Wilbert Joseph Castañeda Gomez, a member of the Navy.
Cabello has accused the CIA, Spain’s intelligence agency, organized crime groups, sex workers and members of the opposition of being behind a plot to oust Maduro. Disputed elections His victory in July was marred by allegations of fraud.
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Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello speaks next to a painting of late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez during a session of the National Assembly in Caracas in September 2024. Venezuela said on Tuesday it had arrested a fourth US citizen who it claims was plotting to assassinate President Nicolas Maduro after elections the opposition claims were stolen. (Federico Parra/AFP)
During a press conference on Saturday, Cabello said those detained were allegedly linked to a plot to assassinate Maduro and other officials.
“These groups want to take over the country’s wealth and we as a government will respond strongly to any attempt at destabilization,” Cabello said, adding that authorities had seized about 400 US-made rifles.
The State Department has denied the allegations, with a spokesperson telling Fox News Digital that “any claims of U.S. involvement in a plot to overthrow Maduro are completely false.”
“The United States will continue to support a democratic solution to the political crisis in Venezuela,” the spokesperson said.
Maduro was declared the winner by Venezuelan officials in July, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last month that there was “overwhelming evidence” that Maduro’s opposition candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, received the most votes.
Venezuela’s National Electoral Council, which comprises Maduro loyalists, said Maduro had won a third six-year term but did not give a detailed breakdown of the results.
However, members of the opposition surprised the government by collecting tally sheets from 80% of the country’s electronic voting machines and publishing them online. They said the tally sheets showed that former diplomat Edmundo Gonzalez had won the election with twice as many votes as Maduro.
According to the Congressional Research Service, Congress’s public policy research arm, Maduro authorities enforced their claimed election results through a harsh post-election repression of protesters, activists, and opposition leaders.
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Maduro’s plane was seen on the tarmac in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, after US authorities seized the aircraft and flew it out of the Dominican Republic. (WFOR)
After the Attorney General issued an arrest warrant for González accusing him of terrorism, he fled into exile. In response, on September 12, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed financial sanctions on 16 Maduro officials for their role in electoral fraud or repression.
“These officials impeded a transparent electoral process and the release of accurate election results,” Blinken said in a statement.
“Instead of respecting the will of the Venezuelan people as expressed in the ballot, Maduro and his proxies have falsely claimed victory while suppressing and intimidating the democratic opposition in an illegitimate attempt to hold on to power by force.”
Earlier this month, the US Confiscated aircraft owned by Maduro It was purchased through a straw company in violation of sanctions laws and export controls in the Dominican Republic, officials said.
Fox News’s Landon Mien and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
