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The Trump administration discreetly instructed federal prosecutors in Miami to refrain from pursuing criminal investigations against the interim president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, as revealed this Thursday by the AP in an exclusive report based on current and former U.S. law enforcement officials.
The directive, described as given "in a low voice," is part of Washington's broader strategy of diplomatic and energy rapprochement with Caracas following the capture of Nicolás Maduro on January 3rd.
The Department of Justice responded to AP with a firm denial: "There has never been an investigation into her to halt," stated a spokesperson for the institution.
However, former officials cited by the agency claim that the investigators and prosecutors were indeed instructed to cease their activities regarding Rodríguez.
The name of the interim Venezuelan president had appeared in nearly a dozen investigations by the DEA linked to alleged drug trafficking, money laundering, and gold smuggling.
The drug agency had categorized her as a “priority target” since 2022, and had been investigating her alleged connections to these illicit activities since 2018, including supposed money laundering through hotels in Isla Margarita.
In March of this year, Reuters reported that federal prosecutors in Miami were preparing a secret criminal charge against Rodríguez for corruption and money laundering related to PDVSA, although no formal charges were ever brought before a court.
The order to halt the investigations comes as the final link in an unprecedented chain of diplomatic protection for Rodríguez.
On April 1st, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Department of the Treasury removed Rodríguez from its Specially Designated Nationals list, where she had remained since September 2018.
Previously, on March 11, the head of the Latin America office at the Department of State, Michael Kozak, formally notified the U.S. justice system that Washington recognized Rodríguez as the only head of state "able to act on behalf of Venezuela."
And on March 7th, President Donald Trump announced at the "Shield of the Americas" Summit in Miami the formal recognition of the Venezuelan government and a “gold deal” worth 165 million dollars with Caracas.
The energy and geopolitical logic of the White House takes precedence over criminal prosecution: Venezuelan oil, minerals, and gold represent strategic interests for Washington.
This Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated before Trump's cabinet that since January 3, more than 10 million barrels of Venezuelan oil had arrived in the U.S., with revenues monitored by the Department of the Treasury and audited by the firm KPMG.
"For the first time, that money is not being stolen. It is going to benefit the Venezuelan people," Rubio said, a statement that contrasts with the history of federal investigations pointing directly to Rodríguez as part of the web of Chavista corruption.
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