US seizes Venezuela President Maduro’s jet as arrest warrant issued for opposition leader

Officials ‘sending a message that no one is above the law’, as leader’s plane flown to Florida from Dominican Republic

The United States has seized the Venezuelan presidential jet used by Nicolás Maduro over what it says are violations of American sanctions.
The plane was flown to Florida from the Dominican Republic, where it has been stationed in recent months, by US officials on Monday.
It came as Venezuela’s attorney general on Monday requested an arrest warrant for Edmundo González, the opposition leader, accusing him of incitement and other crimes.
The US government is investigating what it has claimed are corrupt practices by the Venezuelan government, and says the jet’s acquisition was in violation of American sanctions.
The Justice Department said the plane had been illegally purchased in the US via a shell company, and “smuggled out” to Venezuela.
“This sends a message all the way up to the top,” an official told CNN. “Seizing the foreign head of state’s plane is unheard of for criminal matters.
“We’re sending a clear message here that no one is above the law, no one is above the reach of US sanctions.”
The Venezuelan government said the US’s actions “cannot be described as anything other than piracy”.
Joe Biden, the US president, agreed to ease sanctions on Venezuela in exchange for Mr Maduro’s promise to hold a free and fair election this year, but had his hopes dashed after the apparently fraudulent results were reported and the socialist leader claimed another six-year term in office.
The US has questioned the validity of the result, calling for Mr Maduro’s government to “immediately” release specific results data and recognising his election opponent, Mr Gonzalez, as the winner.
On Monday a Venezuelan court granted an arrest warrant Mr Gonzalez, which the prosecutor’s office said was for “serious crimes”.
The office had earlier published its request to the court on social media, in which it listed the alleged crimes that stem from the opposition’s insistence that Mr Maduro and his allies stole the July 28 vote.
Protests have filled the streets of Caracas, the country’s capital, in a fresh bout of opposition to the result. More than 80 teenagers arrested in protests after the election were released over the weekend.
The seizure of Mr Maduro’s plane is the latest incident in a years-long pursuit of the strongman by the US Department of Justice, which charged him in March 2020 with narco-terrorism, drug trafficking and corruption.
The State Department has offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest.
Homeland Security Investigations, an American law enforcement agency, has previously seized dozens of vehicles that were in the process of being shipped to South America from the US.
Mr Maduro’s plane, a Dassault Falcon 900, is the Venezuelan equivalent of the US’s own Air Force One jet, and is used to transport him and other high-ranking government officials. He has been pictured travelling on the plane on official visits around the world.
The US estimates it is worth about $13 million. It will be impounded in the US, where authorities will collect evidence from it while the Venezuelan government petitions for its release.
US officials have previously accused members of Mr Maduro’s government of syphoning off public money for themselves.
The US official told CNN: “We see these officials and the Maduro regime basically fleecing the Venezuelan people for their own gain,” the US official said.
“You have people who can’t even afford a loaf of bread there and then you have the president of Venezuela jetting around in a high-class private jet.”
Merrick Garland, the US Attorney General, said: “This morning, the Justice Department seized an aircraft we allege was illegally purchased for $13 million through a shell company and smuggled out of the United States for use by Nicolás Maduro and his cronies.
“The Department will continue to pursue those who violate our sanctions and export controls to prevent them from using American resources to undermine the national security of the United States.”
Matthew S Axelrod, the Department of Commerce’s assistant secretary for export enforcement, added: “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.
“It doesn’t matter how fancy the private jet or how powerful the officials – we will work relentlessly with our partners here and across the globe to identify and return any aircraft illegally smuggled outside of the United States.”