U.S. accuses Maduro, Venezuelan party official of drug trade profiteering
Source: Reuters
WORLD NEWS MAY 18, 2018 / 3:09 PM / UPDATED 30 MINUTES AGO
U.S. accuses Maduro, Venezuelan party official of drug trade profiteering
Lesley Wroughton
4 MIN READ
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Friday accused Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and the No. 2 official in the countrys ruling party of profiting from illegal narcotics shipments, the first time that Washington has publicly linked Maduro to the drug trade.
The United States has already imposed sanctions against Maduro for human rights abuses and blamed him for Venezuelas current economic and political crises.
But the narcotics trade charge, leveled in a U.S. Treasury statement justifying sanctions on Socialist Party official Diosdado Cabello, sharpened Washingtons accusations against Maduro as he prepares for Venezuelas controversial presidential elections on Sunday.
As of March 2017, Cabello seized drug loads from small-scale drug traffickers, and combined and exported them through a Venezuelan government-owned airport, the U.S. Treasury said in a statement.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-venezuela-sanctions/u-s-accuses-maduro-venezuelan-party-official-of-drug-trade-profiteering-idUSKCN1IJ2JZ