US says claims of CIA plot to kill Maduro are ‘categorically false’ after Venezuela arrests six foreigners

(CNN) — The US State Department has rejected claims of CIA involvement in an alleged plot to kill Venezuela’s leader Nicolás Maduro, after Venezuelan authorities said they had arrested six foreigners, including a US Navy SEAL.

The State Department called the allegations “categorically false,” adding in a statement that the United States “continues to support a democratic solution to the political crisis in Venezuela.”

The comments come after Venezuela said it had arrested the six for an alleged plot to “destabilize” the country that has been in crisis since disputed elections earlier this year.

Interior minister Diosdado Cabello claimed that the alleged plot was led by the CIA, and aimed at assassinating Maduro.

The accusation comes as Venezuela’s opposition, multiple Latin American leaders and the United States refuse to recognize Maduro’s disputed election win, which has been followed by deadly protests during which thousands were arrested.

In a news conference on Saturday, Cabello identified the purported Navy SEAL as Wilbert Castañeda, and claimed he was the leader of the operation. The minister also named two other detained Americans: David Estrella and Aaron Barrett Logan.

CNN earlier this month reported that Castañeda was arrested in Caracas in August. At the time US authorities said he was a sailor who had traveled to Venezuela.

Last week, Venezuela’s attorney general Tarek William Saab told CNN the sailor was a Mexican-American citizen who was being investigated for entering the country without proper documentation.

Cabello said that in addition to the Americans, two Spanish citizens – José María Basoa Valdovinos and Andrés Martínez Adasme – and one Czech citizen, Jan Darmovzal, were arrested. Venezuelan authorities have also seized 400 US rifles linked to the alleged plot, he said.

“The CIA is at the forefront of this operation,” Cabello said in the news conference, claiming that Spain’s National Intelligence Center was also involved. “That does not surprise us at all,” he said.

He alleged that the operation had “very clear objectives of assassinating President Nicolás Maduro” and other high-ranking Venezuelan politicians including himself and the vice president.

The State Department confirmed on Saturday a member of the US military had been arrested in Venezuela, and that the department was “aware of unconfirmed reports of two additional US citizens detained” in the country.

The department is seeking additional information, the spokesperson said.

A Spanish foreign ministry source told Reuters it was asking Venezuela for more information.

“The Spanish embassy has sent a verbal note to the Venezuelan government asking for access to the detained citizens in order to verify their identities and their nationality and in order to know what they are accused of exactly,” the source told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The Czech Republic’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed to CNN that a Czech citizen has been detained in Venezuela. They added that the Czech embassy in Bogotá is in contact with the family since the country does not have an embassy in Venezuela.

Political crisis

Venezuela is still grappling with the fallout from its presidential election in July, which saw Maduro claim a third term despite global skepticism about the result and outcry from the country’s opposition movement.

The National Electoral Council of Venezuela (CNE) declared Maduro the winner on July 28, a declaration ratified weeks later by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ). However, the CNE still has not published the disaggregated data or any of the vote tally sheets, a measure that many countries consider necessary for the transparency of the electoral process.

The coalition backing opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez insists the vote was stolen, publishing online vote tally sheets which experts say indicate Maduro actually lost the presidency by a significant margin.

The US has acknowledged Gonzalez as the candidate who received the most votes in that election, but has not formally recognized him as president-elect of Venezuela.

The European Union has also expressed skepticism over the election, with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Sunday describing the vote as “undemocratic” and the Maduro regime as “dictatorial and authoritarian.”

“In Venezuela there are more than 2,000 people detained after the elections, the opposition leader has had to flee and the political parties are subject to a thousand limitations on their actions,” Borrell told the Spanish channel Telecinco.

Last week, Gonzalez flew to Spain, fleeing Venezuela after an arrest warrant  was issued accusing him of terrorism, conspiracy and other crimes.

On Thursday, the US imposed sanctions on Venezuelan officials aligned with Maduro for allegedly obstructing the election.

The US also announced that a Venezuelan plane used by Maduro for international travel was seized in the Dominican Republic; a second plane linked to Maduro is under 24-hour surveillance by authorities in the Dominican Republic, a source with knowledge of the matter told CNN.

Meanwhile inside the country, Maduro’s government has cracked down on dissent – the harshest crackdown in years, according to Human Rights Watch. Protests have been fiercely repressed, some 2,400 people have been arrested, and many others are now fleeing the country.

CNN’s Omar Fajardo and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.

CORRECTION: This story has been updated with the correct name of the US Navy SEAL.

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