The United States on Monday seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s plane in the Dominican Republic and flew it to Florida, saying it acted over violation of US sanctions.
United States officials moved to take the aircraft, a Dassault Falcon 900EX private jet used by Maduro and members of his government, with the Justice Department saying the jet was “illegally purchased.”
“The Justice Department seized an aircraft we allege was illegally purchased for $13 million through a shell company and smuggled out of the United States for use by Nicolas Maduro and his cronies,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.
Aircraft tracking site Flight Radar 24 showed that the jet flew from Santo Domingo to Fort Lauderdale on Monday morning.
Venezuela was rocked by protests when Maduro was declared the winner of the disputed July 28 election with more than 2,400 people arrested.
www.yahoo.com/news/us-seizes-venezuela-leader-maduros-171749219.html