By Matt Spetalnick and Jasper Ward
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The US has seized a aircraft utilized by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and flown it from the Dominican Republic to Florida after figuring out that its buy violated U.S. sanctions, the U.S. Justice Division stated on Monday.
The seizure of the plane got here amid persevering with stress on Maduro at residence and overseas over a contested July 28 election that he claimed to have received, whereas the opposition stated its vote tallies confirmed its candidate to have soundly defeated him.
Maduro, his associates and the OPEC member-state’s very important oil sector are beneath heavy U.S. sanctions, and his dealing with of the election has raised the prospects that additional measures may very well be imposed.
U.S. Legal professional Basic Merrick Garland stated in an announcement that the Dassault Falcon 900EX plane was illegally bought for $13 million via a shell firm and smuggled out of the U.S. “for use by Nicolás Maduro and his cronies.”
“Let this seizure send a clear message: aircraft illegally acquired from the United States for the benefit of sanctioned Venezuelan officials cannot just fly off into the sunset,” stated Matthew Axelrod, the U.S. Commerce Division’s Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement.
U.S. officers stated the seizure, which was first reported by CNN, was carried out working intently with the Dominican Republic.
The Venezuelan authorities didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
“This is an important step to ensure that Maduro continues to feel the consequences from his misgovernance of Venezuela,” stated a spokesperson for the White Home Nationwide Safety Council.
A variety of impartial sources has proven that Maduro and his representatives “have tampered with the results of the July 28 presidential election, falsely claimed victory and carried out widespread repression to maintain power by force,” the spokesperson added.
A Justice Division investigation confirmed that in late 2022 and early 2023 “persons affiliated with Maduro allegedly used a Caribbean-based shell company to conceal their involvement in the illegal purchase of the Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft.”
The aircraft was then illegally exported from the US to Venezuela via the Caribbean final yr and since then has flown to and from a Venezuelan navy base and been used “for the benefit of Maduro and his representatives, including to transport Maduro on visits to other countries,” the Justice Division stated.
