Six Venezuelan Municipal Leaders Detained During Anti-Narcotics Sweep
Rewritten Article:
April 9, 2025 - Caracas | Our Website
Venezuela's authorities have nabbed six mayors over the past few weeks as part of a sweeping operation against drug trafficking and organized crime in the western Zulia state. This operation, code-named "Operation Catatumbo Lightning," has been led by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello.
In a press conference last Friday, Cabello divulged that the recent arrests were indeed part of this ongoing anti-narcotics operation, which commenced in early March. The effort involves intelligence, police, and military officers working together.
Last week, Indira Fernández Duarte, the pro-government mayor of Guajira municipality, was scooped up by the Bolivarian Intelligence Service (SEBIN). Also taken into custody were her three municipal officials, as well as her husband, Ronni Yancen, who remains a wanted man by authorities.
Prior to this, from March 12–15, three more pro-government mayors in Zulia - Alberto Zubalbarro, Jorge Nava, and Danilo Añez from Almirante Padilla, Miranda, and Jesús Enrique Losada municipalities, respectively - were apprehended. Fernando Loaiza, the opposition mayor of Catatumbo municipality, also found himself in handcuffs. These arrests follow the January detention of Nervis Sarcos, the opposition mayor of Colón municipality.
Taking a closer look, Cabello declared that the busts delivered a significant "financial blow" to the far-right opposition sector spearheaded by María Corina Machado. The minister claimed that these drug trafficking activities were linked to the opposition, going as far as accusing several political opponents of collaboration in the criminal scheme.
Particularly, he pointed the finger at former Zulia governor Juan Pablo Guanipa, former National Assembly deputy Tomás Guanipa, ex-presidential candidate Edmundo González, currently in self-imposed exile in Spain, and wanted fugitive Iván Simonovis, all of whom are purportedly involved in the criminal enterprise. Furthermore, Cabello included far-right Colombian politicians and ex-presidents Álvaro Uribe and Iván Duque in the allegations.
According to Cabello, Zulia serves as a primary smuggling route for drugs traveling from Colombia to the United States, which he referred to as the "biggest consumer of cocaine." In a somewhat audacious statement, he commented, "I’ve never seen news of drug trafficking gangs being captured in the United States. Just something to think about."
The operation has already reaped impressive results: authorities have seized over 16 tons of "high-purity cocaine," alongside fuel, three submarines, 25 boats, navigation equipment, firearms, and materials used to conceal drug shipments. Additionally, they have dismantled paramilitary camps on both sides of the border in the Catatumbo region.
The arrests expanded beyond political lines, with mayors from both the ruling party (PSUV) and the opposition being taken into custody. In October 2024, Rafael Raḿirez Colina, the opposition mayor of Maracaibo (Zulia’s capital), was apprehended on corruption charges, and investigations have since uncovered his alleged ties to drug trafficking and money laundering.
Zulia has historically functioned as a drug trafficking corridor, as well as a smuggling route for various contraband. In January 2022, two mayors, two national legislators, and several accomplices were imprisoned as part of an anti-drug and fuel smuggling crackdown known as "Iron Fist". In the ongoing war on narcotics, there seems to be no end in sight.
Edited by Cira Pascual Marquina in Caracas.
- The recent arrests of six mayors, including Indira Fernández Duarte from Guajira municipality, are part of Operation Catatumbo Lightning, an anti-narcotics operation led by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello in Zulia state.
- In his press conference, Cabello alleged that these drug trafficking activities are linked to the opposition, accusing several political opponents, including Juan Pablo Guanipa, Tomás Guanipa, Edmundo González, Iván Simonovis, Álvaro Uribe, and Iván Duque, of collaboration in the criminal scheme.
- The operation, which commenced in early March, has already yielded significant results, with over 16 tons of high-purity cocaine, fuel, three submarines, 25 boats, navigation equipment, firearms, and materials used to conceal drug shipments seized.
- The expansion of the operation has shown that it does not target specific political parties, as mayors from both the ruling party (PSUV) and the opposition have been taken into custody, such as Rafael Raḿirez Colina, the opposition mayor of Maracaibo.
