SANTO DOMINGO, – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio oversaw the seizure of a Venezuelan government plane in the Dominican Republic today. U.S. authorities confirmed that they had grounds to file a civil forfeiture action to recover the aircraft, citing violations of U.S. sanctions, export controls, and money laundering, according to a statement from the State Department.
This marks the second time in recent months that the U.S. has seized a Venezuelan plane in the Dominican Republic. On Thursday, Rubio, in the final leg of his Latin American tour, observed a U.S. Department of Homeland Security official attach a warrant to the plane, formally seizing it. The plane had been undergoing maintenance at an airport in Santo Domingo.
The U.S. State Department revealed that high-ranking members of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s government had used the seized Dassault Falcon 200 aircraft for travel to countries such as Greece, Turkey, Russia, Nicaragua, and Cuba.
Marco Rubio, who has long been an outspoken critic of Maduro’s regime, advocated for stringent sanctions against the Venezuelan government during his time as a U.S. Senator. As the son of Cuban immigrants, Rubio has consistently criticized Maduro, an ally of Cuba’s communist government, and has reiterated this week that the U.S. does not recognize Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate leader.
This action comes shortly after Richard Grenell, former U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy, visited Venezuela for talks with Maduro last month. Grenell left Caracas with six Americans who had been detained in the country and also pushed for Venezuela to accept nationals that the U.S. seeks to deport.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his government have consistently rejected sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other countries, labeling them as illegitimate and describing them as an “economic war” aimed at crippling Venezuela’s economy.
Maduro’s government-backed victory in the July 2024 election has been heavily contested by opposition groups, international observers, and several nations, including the United States, which does not recognize the legitimacy of the election results.
The Venezuelan government has not yet responded to a request for comment from Reuters regarding the recent seizure of the plane.
