WASHINGTON: The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on family members and associates of Nicolas Maduro and his wife, as Washington ratchets up pressure on the Venezuelan president.
The US Treasury Department in a statement said it had imposed sanctions on seven people it said were tied to Maduro and his wife. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused them of “propping up Nicolas Maduro’s rogue narcostate.”
“We will not allow Venezuela to continue flooding our nation with deadly drugs,” Bessent said.
“Maduro and his criminal accomplices threaten our hemisphere’s peace and stability. The Trump administration will continue targeting the networks that prop up his illegitimate dictatorship.”
Venezuela’s information ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Maduro and his government have vehemently denied links to crime and say that the US is seeking to oust him in order to take control of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
In recent months, the administration of US President Donald Trump has been ratcheting up pressure on Maduro, executing a large-scale military buildup in the southern Caribbean.
It has carried out strikes against suspected drug vessels in the region, seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, and declared a “blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.
Trump has also repeatedly said that strikes on land in Venezuela are coming soon.
Friday’s action sanctioned relatives of Carlos Erik Malpica Flores, the nephew of Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores. The US says Malpica Flores was involved in a corruption plot at state oil company PDVSA. He was sanctioned by Washington last week.
His mother — the sister of Maduro’s wife — as well as his father, sister, wife and daughter were hit with sanctions on Friday.
The Treasury on Friday also extended a general license protecting Venezuela-owned refiner Citgo Petroleum from creditors through February 3 that was set to expire on December 20. It was a far shorter extension than the last one Treasury issued in June, which had a six-month duration.
Washington has protected the Houston-based company from creditors in recent years even amid a court-organized auction of shares in its parent company, PDV Holding. The license temporarily bans transactions with a Venezuela-issued bond collateralized with Citgo equity.
A US judge in November authorized the sale of shares in the parent of Citgo Petroleum to an affiliate of Elliott Investment Management, following his approval of a $5.9 billion bid from the company in a court-organized auction to pay Venezuela-linked creditors.
The sale order, which is pending Treasury Department approval, was the last major legal step to wrap a two-year auction aimed at paying up to 15 creditors for debt defaults and expropriations.
US issues sanctions on family members and associates of Venezuela’s Maduro
https://arab.news/wun6f
US issues sanctions on family members and associates of Venezuela’s Maduro
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused them of “propping up Nicolas Maduro’s rogue narcostate“
- “We will not allow Venezuela to continue flooding our nation with deadly drugs,” Bessent said
Grand jury declines to indict man in shooting that killed teen at Kentucky State University
- After the grand jury decision, Kentucky State officials said they “will cooperate with law enforcement and investigators as appropriate” and are focused on student safety and well-being
FRANKFORT, Kentucky: A grand jury has declined to indict the father of two Kentucky State University students who was charged with murder in an on-campus shooting that killed one student and critically injured another.
In a social media post after the Tuesday hearing, defense attorney Scott Danks said grand jurors decided not to indict his client, Jacob Lee Bard, for the Dec. 9 shooting and he is out of jail. Bard’s attorneys have said that 20 to 30 people had gathered to attack his son and family, and that he was justified in shooting two people who were beating his son.
After the grand jury decision, Kentucky State officials said they “will cooperate with law enforcement and investigators as appropriate” and are focused on student safety and well-being.
Bard’s attorneys say the family was moving their younger son out, with two armed campus police officers present, after withdrawing both sons from school because of “multiple armed, violent” incidents against them and other students in the days leading up to Dec. 9, some captured on security cameras.
When the family and an officer reached the dormitory entrance on the move-out day, the group of people in masks and hoods rushed out and began violently assaulting the family and others, including beating the son’s head against the pavement, the attorneys said.
In October, the younger son reported a burglary in his dorm room to campus police and received threats of violence afterward, the attorneys said.
Because of continued death threats, the sons are now staying in an undisclosed location, the attorneys added.
“Jacob’s actions were absolutely justified under the law, and were the only measure that prevented his son’s death or serious injury,” the attorneys wrote.
Investigators have said the shooting was isolated, but they have not publicly shared details of the circumstances or a possible motive. The shooting killed 19-year-old De’Jon Fox of Indianapolis.
In a message to the campus community, Kentucky State said the grand jury decision “does not lessen the pain our community continues to feel, nor does it change our priorities.”
“Our commitment remains centered on supporting our students and ensuring Kentucky State University is a safe place to learn, live, and work,” it said.
The shooting was the second in four months near the residence hall. Someone fired multiple shots from a vehicle on Aug. 17, striking two people who the university said weren’t students. Frankfort police said one victim was treated for minor injuries and the second sustained serious injuries. The dorm and at least one vehicle were damaged by gunfire.
Police have said Bard, 48, is from Evansville, Indiana, which is about 150 miles (240 kilometers) west of Frankfort.
Kentucky State is a public historically Black university with about 2,200 students. Lawmakers authorized the school’s creation in 1886.
