US seizes Venezuelan President Maduro's plane in Dominican Republic
File photo of Nicolas Maduro.
The United States has seized a plane used by Venezuelan PresidentNicolasMaduroand flown it from the Dominican Republic to Florida after determining that its purchase violated USsanctions, the USJustice Department said on Monday.
The seizure of the aircraft came amid continuing pressure onMaduroat home and abroad over a contested July 28 election that he claimed to have won, while the opposition said its vote tallies showed its candidate to have soundly defeated him.
Maduro, his associates and the OPEC member-state's vital oil sector are under heavy USsanctions, and his handling of the election has raised the prospects that further measures could be imposed.
USAttorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement that the Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft was illegally purchased for $13 million through a shell company and smuggled out of the US"for use by NicolásMaduroand 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," said Matthew Axelrod, the USCommerce Department's Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement.
USofficials said the seizure, which was first reported by CNN, was carried out working closely with the Dominican Republic.
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The Venezuelan government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
"This is an important step to ensure thatMadurocontinues to feel the consequences from his misgovernance of Venezuela," said a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council.
A wide range of independent sources has shown thatMaduroand 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 Department investigation showed that in late 2022 and early 2023 "persons affiliated withMaduroallegedly used a Caribbean-based shell company to conceal their involvement in the illegal purchase of the Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft."
The plane was then illegally exported from the United States to Venezuela through the Caribbean last year and since then has flown to and from a Venezuelan military base and been used "for the benefit ofMaduroand his representatives, including to transport Maduroon visits to other countries," the Justice Department said.