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<div class="header reader-header reader-show-element" dir="ltr"> <font
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href="http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/14402">http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/14402</a></font>
<h1 class="reader-title">Venezuelan Gov’t Presents Evidence of
Alleged Opposition Paramilitary Plot</h1>
<div class="credits reader-credits">By Ricardo Vaz - March 25,
2019</div>
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<p>Caracas, March 25, 2019 (<a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/">venezuelanalysis.com</a>)
- Venezuelan authorities have alleged that
self-proclaimed “Interim President” Juan Guaido and
other opposition leaders were involved in a plot to
carry out acts of terrorism employing foreign
paramilitaries trained in Colombia.</p>
<p>Venezuelan Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez <a
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zosm99g50pk">presented</a>
what he claimed to be <a
href="http://albaciudad.org/2019/03/gobierno-venezolano-presenta-pruebas-que-involucran-a-juan-guaido-y-la-oposicion-venezolana-en-hechos-terroristas-contra-el-pais/">evidence</a>
of “ultra-right plans to promote regime change.”
According to Rodriguez, Venezuelan intelligence
services uncovered plans to contract mercenaries from
Colombia and Central America and bring them into
Venezuela to execute targeted killings and acts of
sabotage, adding that “at least half” of the armed
groups managed to make their way into Venezuelan
territory and are currently being sought.</p>
<p>“We have identified some paramilitaries that have
entered Venezuela, and we will search for them by
land, sea and air,” Rodriguez told press.</p>
<p>Juan Guaido’s chief of staff, Roberto Marrero, was <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14398">arrested</a>
on Thursday, accused of leading a “terrorist cell.”
Rodriguez claimed that Marrero was the link to to the
hiring of Central American mercenaries.</p>
<p>Rodriguez went on to reveal screen captures of
Marrero’s phone purportedly showing Whatsapp group
conversations featuring Marrero, Guaido, Leopoldo
Lopez, currently under house arrest after being <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11502">convicted</a>
for inciting violence in the 2014 street protests,
among other opposition figures. Rodriguez pledged that
more evidence will be divulged in the coming days.</p>
<p>The screen captures also revealed details of alleged
bank accounts through which payments to the
paramilitary groups were supposed to be made. One of
them was in Banesco’s Panama branch. Banesco is
Venezuela’s largest private bank, and Rodriguez called
on Banesco owner Ricardo Escotet to inform security
services whether this account exists and what
movements have been made.</p>
<p>Rodriguez indicated that Venezuelan authorities had
learned of the existence of the bank accounts after
notorious Russian pranksters Vladimir ‘Vovan’
Kuznetsov and Alexei ‘Lexus’ Stolyarov <a
href="https://www.rt.com/news/453844-prank-russia-venezuela-guaido/">called</a>
Guaido impersonating the president of Switzerland. The
pranksters said they had identified funds belonging to
President Nicolas Maduro they wished to transfer to
Guaido, who readily provided the “president” with
account information.</p>
<p>Lawyer Juan Planchart was also reportedly detained on
Sunday by Venezuela’s SEBIN intelligence services, and
is reportedly being held at SEBIN’s facilities in
Caracas’ Plaza Venezuela. Planchart was presented in
the supposed Whatsapp conversations revealed by
Rodriguez as a financial intermediary. At the time of
writing there has been no official confirmation of
Planchart’s arrest.</p>
<p>Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro likewise divulged
that a Colombian paramilitary leader, Wilfrido Torres
Gomez, alias “Neco,” was captured in Carabobo State on
Saturday. Jorge Rodriguez later claimed on <a
href="https://twitter.com/jorgerpsuv/status/1109538528889896961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">Twitter</a>
that Torres was involved in the alleged opposition
plans.</p>
<p>US authorities reacted to Marrero’s arrest by
imposing <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14398">sanctions</a>
against three major Venezuelan public banks on Friday.
The move followed sanctions against Venezuela’s <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14396">mining
sector</a> and an <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14268">oil
embargo</a> imposed in late January. There has been
no reaction to the latest arrests from US officials or
from Guaido and the Venezuelan opposition.</p>
<p>Rodriguez’s revelations came as two Russian air force
planes touched down at Venezuela’s Maiquetia airport
on Sunday. According to reports, the planes carried
equipment and around 100 servicemen, including a
high-ranking Russian defense official.</p>
<p>According to a source quoted by <a
href="https://sputniknews.com/latam/201903251073513407-russia-venezuela-cooperation/">Sputnik</a>,
the deployment represents a fulfilment of “technical
and military cooperation agreements.” The Venezuelan
government has yet to issue a public statement. Russia
had previously sent <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14182">military
aircraft</a> to Venezuela in December as part of
bilateral defense accords.</p>
<p>US officials reacted to the latest development, with
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo <a
href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-pompeo/pompeo-urges-moscow-to-cease-unconstructive-behavior-in-venezuela-idUSKCN1R61PL">calling</a>
on Russia to “cease its unconstructive behavior”
regarding Venezuela. Florida Senator Marco Rubio <a
href="https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1110229048574308353">called</a>
the presence of Russian troops on Venezuelan soil a
“direct threat” to US national security.</p>
<p>Last week, US and Russian authorities held <a
href="https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/14397">ad
hoc talks</a> on Venezuela in Rome, but no concrete
agreement was reached.</p>
<p><em>Edited and with additional reporting by Lucas
Koerner from Caracas.</em></p>
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