Jagdeo Says He’s Willing to Stake Political Career on Claims About Sanctioned Family’s Visits to Venezuelan Embassy
By Travis Chase | HGP Nightly News
General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo, has declared he is willing to put his political career on the line to prove that members of the Mohamed family — who remain under United States sanctions — have been visiting the Venezuelan embassy to apply for visas.
Speaking at a press briefing, Jagdeo said there is “reasonable suspicion” regarding the family’s alleged frequent visits, and an investigation is underway. He disclosed that the Venezuelan ambassador confirmed Nazar Mohamed had visited the embassy seeking a visa, though Jagdeo noted there could be other reasons for the visit.
The Vice President linked the matter to heightened tensions involving Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro, pointing to U.S. allegations of Maduro’s involvement in large-scale narcotics trafficking. The Trump administration had doubled the $15 million reward for Maduro’s arrest to $50 million, accusing him of working with cartels to flood the U.S. with fentanyl-laced cocaine. Jagdeo said Minister of Foreign Affairs Hugh Todd’s summoning of the Venezuelan ambassador was in the context of U.S. congressional statements about possible links between Maduro and the Mohameds.
In response, the Mohamed family has rejected the allegations as “baseless, malicious, and politically motivated,” calling them a smear campaign aimed at distracting from alleged deep-seated government corruption.
