The U.S. has seized a aircraft utilized by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and transported it from the Dominican Republic to Florida, citing an alleged violation of U.S. sanctions, the Justice Department introduced Monday, as Caracas known as it “piracy.”
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland stated in an announcement that the Dassault Falcon 900EX plane was allegedly illegally bought for $13 million by means of 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 Department’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.
Venezuela’s authorities slammed the seizure as “piracy” by U.S. authorities.
“Once again, the authorities of the United States of America are engaged in a criminal practice that cannot be described as anything other than piracy,” the international ministry in Caracas stated in an announcement.
A Justice Department 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 United States to Venezuela by means of the Caribbean final 12 months 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 Department stated.
Source: www.dailysabah.com