Colombia’s Duque hopes trial will unveil Venezuela’s ‘drug dictatorship’

Colombia President Ivan Duque said Monday he hopes the trial of a suspected money launderer extradited to the United States will shed light on Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro’s “drug dictatorship.”

Businessman Alex Saab appeared in court in Florida on Monday after being extradited on Saturday to the United States from Cape Verde, where he had been detained since June 2020.

Saab, a Colombian national, and his business partner Alvaro Pulido are charged in the US with running a network that exploited food aid destined for Venezuela, an oil-rich nation mired in an acute economic crisis.

“I hope that all the support Alex Saab gives to the US court will also show what there is behind this network, and it’s a drug dictatorship that tried to use this network to launder money,” Duque said during an official visit to Sao Paulo.

Duque is one of the fiercest critics of Maduro.

Venezuela’s government reacted with fury on Sunday to news of Saab’s extradition, calling off the latest round of talks with the Venezuelan opposition in Mexico.

Duque has often accused Maduro’s regime of drug-trafficking to raise money, and also of harboring armed Colombian rebels on its soil.

“I also hope that (a trial) will serve to consolidate the accusations being made by Colombia for some time, which is the collusion of Maduro’s regime with terrorist groups and drug-traffickers,” said Duque.

Experts believe Saab could shed light on hidden financial transactions between Caracas and allied countries.

However he has indicated he will not cooperate with the US court proceedings.

Venezuela’s opposition says Saab, 49, who has Venezuelan nationality, was a frontman doing shady deals for Maduro’s government.

Saab and Pulido are alleged to have moved $350 million out of Venezuela into accounts they controlled in the US and other countries. They risk up to 20 years in prison.

Saab, who was indicted in July 2019 in Miami for money laundering, was traveling on a Venezuelan diplomatic passport when detained in Cape Verde.

Agence France-Presse

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