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Delcy Rodríguez has been on the radar of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for years.
According to AP, the current interim president of Venezuela was labeled in 2022 as a “priority target,” a title used by the DEA for suspects who have a “significant impact” on drug trafficking.
The AP report also reveals that the DEA maintains a detailed file on Rodríguez dating back to 2018, which lists known associates and accusations ranging from drug trafficking to gold smuggling
In early 2021, the DEA received testimony from a confidential informant, who stated that Rodríguez was using hotels in the Caribbean resort of Isla Margarita "as a front for money laundering."
He also partnered with Maduro's frontman, Alex Saab, who was arrested by U.S. authorities in 2020 on money laundering charges, and following his return to Venezuela this Saturday, Rodríguez has just removed him from the government.
Rodríguez has never been publicly accused by the U.S. government nor is she among the more than a dozen Venezuelan officials charged with drug trafficking alongside the ousted president, AP recalls
However, his name appears in nearly a dozen DEA investigations, some ongoing, involving agents from Paraguay and Ecuador to Phoenix and New York.
AP was unable to determine the specific focus of each investigation, concludes AP, which interviewed three current and former DEA agents who confirmed interest in Rodríguez during her tenure as vice president.
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