The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) unsealed two indictments on March 26, 2020, charging Nicolás Maduro, President of Venezuela, along with 13 other high-ranking officials, with “narco-terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking and other criminal charges.” According to the DOJ, the defendants allegedly conspired with the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), Colombia’s largest rebel group, to flood the United States with cocaine. The U.S. Department of State is offering a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to Maduro’s arrest and/or conviction.
U.S. Charges Maduro and 14 Top Venezuelan Officials
Among those charged are Venezuela’s Vice President for the Economy Tareck El Aissami, Minister of Defense Vladimir Padrino López, and Supreme Court Chief Justice Maikel Moreno. Attorney General William P. Barr stated: “For more than 20 years, Maduro and a number of high-ranking colleagues allegedly conspired with the FARC, causing tons of cocaine to enter and devastate American communities.”
The indictment alleges that since at least 1999, Maduro and other officials have acted as leaders and managers of the Cártel de Los Soles, a drug trafficking organization that leveraged state institutions to facilitate cocaine smuggling. U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman affirmed: “Maduro very deliberately deployed cocaine as a weapon. We will not allow these corrupt Venezuelan officials to use the U.S. banking system to move their illicit proceeds.” U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan added that over the last decade, corrupt Venezuelan officials looted billions of dollars from the country, often using South Florida banks and real estate to conceal their activities.
Venezuelan Crypto Regulator Charged with Sanctions Evasion
A separate indictment charges Joselit Ramirez Camacho, 33, Venezuela’s Superintendent of Cryptocurrency (Sunacrip), with crimes related to evading sanctions. From February 2017 to March 2019, Camacho allegedly worked with U.S. persons and U.S.-based entities to provide private flight services for Maduro’s 2018 presidential campaign, violating sanctions targeting Maduro. Sunacrip is Venezuela’s main regulator of cryptocurrencies, including the national digital currency, the Petro.
The investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Special Operations Division, the New York Strike Force, and the Miami Field Division. Alysa D. Erichs of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) commented: “Today’s announcement highlights HSI’s global reach and commitment to aggressively identify, target and investigate individuals who violate U.S. laws, exploit financial systems, and hide behind cryptocurrency to further their illicit criminal activity.”
$15 Million Bounty and Potential Sentences
Under the State Department’s Narcotics Rewards Program, rewards of up to $15 million are offered for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Maduro. Rewards of up to $10 million are offered for Tareck El Aissami, Cliver Alcala, Diosdado Cabello, and Hugo Carvajal, and up to $5 million for FARC Secretariat member Luciano Marín Arango (aka “Ivan Marquez”).
Maduro faces charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy (mandatory minimum 20 years), conspiracy to import cocaine into the U.S. (mandatory minimum 10 years), and using and carrying machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of those conspiracies (mandatory minimum 30 years). All charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.