The United States has confiscated an aircraft that belongs to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, asserting that it was acquired unlawfully for $13 million (£9.8 million) and illicitly transported out of the nation.
As per the United States Department of Justice, the Falcon 900EX aircraft was confiscated in the Dominican Republic and subsequently relocated to the state of Florida in the United States.
It remains ambiguous how and when the aircraft arrived in the Dominican Republic. Tracking information indicated its departure from La Isabela airport in proximity to the capital, Santo Domingo, on Monday, arriving shortly thereafter at Fort Lauderdale airport in Florida.
There has been no prompt response from Mr. Maduro or the Venezuelan government regarding this issue.
U.S. officials have stated that the aircraft was seized on the grounds of suspected infringements of U.S. export control and sanctions legislation.
They further indicated that an investigation revealed that individuals associated with Mr. Maduro allegedly utilized a shell corporation based in the Caribbean to obscure their involvement in the aircraft’s unlawful acquisition from a company located in Florida during late 2022 and early 2023.
Subsequently, the aircraft was unlawfully exported from the United States to Venezuela via the Caribbean in April 2023.
The assertion by U.S. officials that the sale and export of the aircraft contravened U.S. sanctions is unlikely to resonate with President Maduro, who has consistently accused the United States of interfering in his nation’s domestic affairs.
A spokesperson for the White House national security council said the action represented “an important step to ensure that Maduro continues to feel the consequences from his misgovernance of Venezuela”.
Markenzy Lapointe, US attorney for the Southern District of Florida said the Dominican Republic authorities had given the US government “invaluable assistance” in organising the seizure.
“It doesn’t matter how fancy the private jet or how powerful the officials – we will work relentlessly with our partners here and across the globe to identify and return any aircraft illegally smuggled outside of the United States,” said Matthew S Axelrod from the department of commerce – one of the federal agencies involved in the operation to recover the plane.
The plane appeared to be flown to the Venezuelan capital Caracas after arriving in Kingston in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in April 2023, according to data held by the Flightradar24 website.
US officials said it subsequently flew “almost exclusively to and from a military base in Venezuela”. It is unclear how and when the plane arrived in the Dominican Republic.
But US officials said the jet had been used by Mr Maduro “on visits to other countries”.
