Venezuela detains two Maduro allies facing U.S. money laundering charges
Venezuelan security agents questioned businessmen Raúl Gorrín and Alex Saab overnight, signaling deepening cooperation between Caracas and Washington.
18 min ago
Venezuelan security agents have questioned two prominent businessmen who face money laundering charges in the United States, according to five Venezuelans and a U.S. official.
The men, Raúl Gorrín and Alex Saab, were detained in Caracas overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday. Both have ties to deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. U.S. law enforcement agencies had knowledge of the detention, said one of the Venezuelans and the American official. All sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The current status of the two men remains unclear. A representative for Gorrín said he was free as of Wednesday evening. A lawyer for Saab, Luigi Giuliano, denied his client was detained.
Saab, a 54-year-old Colombian-Venezuelan businessman, was detained as part of a joint operation between American and Venezuelan authorities, according to a U.S. police official. He is currently in custody of the Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia Nacional, or Sebin, Venezuela's intelligence service, while authorities decide on his transfer to the United States.
Born in Barranquilla, Colombia, with Lebanese ancestry, Saab gained international prominence in 2020 when Cape Verdean authorities arrested him at Washington's request. He was extradited to the United States in October 2021, where he faced accusations of conspiracy to launder hundreds of millions of dollars. He had previously been detained in the United States before his recent apprehension in Venezuela.
Saab is described as a close ally of Nicolás Maduro and has been identified as the former president's principal financial operator and front man. Maduro himself was detained in a U.S. military operation in Caracas on January 3.
Gorrín, the other detained businessman, is a Venezuelan entrepreneur and owner of the television channel Globovisión. He is also characterized as a front man for Maduro and is similarly in Sebin custody pending extradition discussions with the United States.