DOJ officials seize Venezuelan president’s plane

The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday seized the allegedly ill-gotten plane in the Dominican Republic, transporting it to southern Florida, officials said. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro Moros bought the Dassault Falcon 900EX allegedly in violation of U.S. export sanctions against Venezuela, the DOJ said.

Is he still president? On Tuesday morning, many media outlets reported that a Venezuelan judge had signed an arrest warrant for Maduro political opponent Edmundo González Urrutia. Maduro has held onto power over the last month despite challenges to his authority. A month ago, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken questioned whether Maduro was the rightful leader of the country. Overwhelming evidence showed that the challenger, González, won Venezuela’s recent presidential election, Blinken said.

How is Maduro’s plane alleged to have been illegally purchased? In 2019, then-President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing sanctions on individuals associated with either the Venezuelan government or Maduro’s regime, the DOJ said. The U.S. government also ordered American companies not to sell certain products to Venezuela’s military and intelligence agencies.

In late 2022 and early 2023, individuals associated with Maduro purchased the plane using shell corporations from a Florida company. The plane at the time was valued at around $13 million. Maduro’s associates then moved the plane to Venezuela. From there, it has since visited Venezuelan military installations and even transported Maduro to other countries.

Dig deeper:Read Barton J. Gingerich’s column in WORLD Opinions about Maduro’s recent spat with Elon Musk, the owner of the social media platform X.