Alex Saab was deported to Miami after being held in Venezuela, where he now faces charges of money laundering and bribing senior officials. Jorge Rodriguez used the handover to argue that Saab had maintained links with U.S. agencies, describing the relationship as episodic and leaving open questions about additional crimes beyond corruption, embezzlement, and alleged fraud tied to Venezuelan nationality. Judicial sources indicate Saab’s criminal record may include other acts. The handover triggered controversy among loyalists and the opposition, including questions about why Saab was treated as a foreign national despite prior claims that he was Venezuelan. The episode is framed as a major example of shifting power tactics in Caracas.
"Saab was deported to Miami on Saturday, where he faces charges of money laundering and bribing senior officials. Since 2019, Alex Saab's case has been his business with U.S. agencies [...] Soon all of you will find out what kind of relationship he had and has with those agencies, Rodriguez said. It was the final nail in the coffin for one of the major symbols of Maduro's era of power, a figure once defended and praised by many, including Rodriguez himself, who led the negotiation to bring him back from a U.S. prison."
"In a long speech, Rodriguez not only accused Saab of retaining links to U.S. agencies a cooperation revealed as episodic in 2022 but also left numerous questions open about the businessman, as if what is already known corruption, embezzlement, or the alleged fraud surrounding his Venezuelan nationality were only part of his criminal record. Could there have been other criminal acts? he asked. The answer, according to judicial sources, is yes. Since his arrest in February, the narrative has grown that Saab, beyond any friendship he may have had with Maduro, pursued his own agenda and had enough power to carry it out."
"The handover of the former regime fixer to the United States is the most revealing episode of how the Rodriguez siblings, backed by Diosdado Cabello, are trying to sever the most toxic ties of the Maduro era Alex Saab in Caracas, in January 2024. Three days of controversy were enough for Jorge Rodriguez to deliver the final thrust."
Read at english.elpais.com
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