Guaidó denies ties to invasion plotters

CARACAS (AP):

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó on Monday denied having anything to do with an ex-Green Beret who claimed responsibility for a deadly beach invasion aimed at arresting socialist leader Nicolás Maduro. The government, meanwhile, said it has mobilised more than 25,000 troops to hunt for other rebel cells.

Guaidó said in a statement that he has “no relationship nor responsibility for any actions” taken by the US war veteran, Jordan Goudreau, who repeated assertions that Guaidó had a contract with his security company, though he said he was paid only a tiny share of the amount agreed upon. That claim could pose a danger for Guaidó, who has been harassed but not arrested in the year since he declared himself Venezuela’s legitimate leader, a role recognised by the US and some 60 other nations.

Seaborne Raid

The three-time Bronze Star US combat veteran claims to have helped organise a seaborne raid from Colombia early Sunday on the Venezuelan coast, which the government said it foiled, killing eight insurgents and arresting two others. He said the operation had received no aid from Guaidó or the US or Colombian governments.

Goudreau said by telephone on Monday that 52 other fighters – including two US veterans – had infiltrated Venezuelan territory and were in the first stage of a mission to recruit members of the security forces to join their cause.

“That’s going to take time,” Goudreau told The Associated Press in a phone interview. “The ultimate goal has never changed – it’s to liberate Venezuela.”

The government’s chief of strategic operations, Adm Remigio Ceballos, announced that more than 25,000 soldiers were mounting search operations to ensure the country is free of “mercenaries and paramilitaries”.

Venezuelan authorities said Monday they arrested another eight accused “mercenaries” in a coastal town and showed images of security forces handling the shirtless men without identifying them.

“Venezuela holds the governments of Donald Trump and Colombia’s Ivan Duque responsible for the unknown and dangerous consequences of this provocative mercenary aggression,” Maduro’s government said in a letter to the international community.

The AP was unable to verify either the government’s or Goudreau’s version of events. Opposition politicians and US authorities issued statements suggesting Maduro’s allies had fabricated the assault. Officials have not released the full identities of those they say were killed or detained, though they identified one of the fallen as a man involved with Goudreau’s training camp in Colombia.

An AP investigation published Friday found that Goudreau had been working with a retired Venezuelan army general – who now faces US narcotics charges – to train dozens of deserters from Venezuela’s security forces at secret camps inside neighbouring Colombia. The goal was to mount a cross-border raid that would end in Maduro’s arrest.

But the ragtag group lacked funding and U.S. government support. It also appears to have been penetrated by Maduro’s extensive Cuban-backed intelligence network.

Goudreau and retired Venezuelan Capt. Javier Nieto, who both live in Florida, issued a video late Sunday claiming they had organized the mission to detain Maduro that they call “Operation Gideon.” Goudreau, wearing a New York Yankees cap, spoke in English.

Goudreau said Monday he’s talking with wealthy donors around the world to raise money for the second phase of the mission and hopes to raise a force of up to 5,000, he said.

“I don’t care about politics. I don’t care about people’s careers,” he said. “I care about my men on the ground right now who are in the most dangerous phase of the operation. I’m trying to get financial support in order to save their lives and to help them be successful.”

Goudreau, 43, said 52 of his men were still on the ground and calls were being activated inside Venezuela, some of them fighting under the command of Venezuelan National Guardsman Capt Antonio Sequea, who participated in a barracks revolt against Maduro a year ago. He said he hoped to join the rebels soon.

There was no outward sign of fighting in the capital or elsewhere on Monday.