After the capture of Nicolás Madurothe vice president Delcy Rodríguez emerged as the preferred figure of the United States to lead the stabilization process from Venezuela. However, there was no mention of the cloud of suspicion that surrounded her for a long time before assuming the interim presidency.
Delcy Rodríguez has been on the radar of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for years. He was even labeled a “priority target” in 2022, a designation reserved for suspects believed to have a “significant impact” on drug trafficking.
This is confirmed records obtained by The Associated Press and more than half a dozen American law enforcement officials.
Delcy Rodríguez, investigated by the DEA
The DEA has an intelligence file on Delcy Rodríguez dating back to at least 2018, according to records. There are accusations ranging from drug trafficking to gold smuggling.
A confidential informant who testified to the DEA in early 2021 said that used hotels in the Caribbean resort of Isla Margarita “as a front to launder money.” In addition, last year he was linked to Alex Saab, who was arrested in 2020 for money laundering.
Despite this, the US government has never made public accusations against Delcy Rodríguez for any crime. On the other hand, Jorge Rodríguez’s sister is not among the Venezuelan officials accused of drug trafficking along with Maduro.
However, his name appears in nearly a dozen DEA investigations, some of which are still ongoing. They involve agents from Paraguay and Ecuador to Phoenix and New York, although the focus of the investigations could not be specified.
Current and former DEA agents revealed intense interest in Rodríguez during much of her tenure as vice president, which began in 2018. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss these investigations.
The records do not clarify the reasons that led to Rodríguez being elevated to a “priority target,” a designation that requires excessive documentation to justify additional investigations.
“He was on the rise, so it’s not surprising that he became a priority target because of his position. The problem is that when people talk about you and you become a priority target, there is a difference between that and the evidence that supports an accusation,” said Kurt Lunkenheimer, a former federal prosecutor in Miami who has handled multiple cases related to Venezuela.
On the other hand, Venezuela’s Ministry of Communications did not respond to requests for comment on this issue.
