CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Friday that a “U.S. spy” was captured near an oil refining complex in the northwest of the country, which is going through a severe fuel shortage crisis.
“Yesterday we captured a U.S. spy in Falcon state, spying on the Amuay and Cardon refineries,” Maduro said live on state television.
Maduro said it was “a marine, who was serving as a marine on CIA bases in Iraq. He was captured with specialized weapons, he was captured with large amounts of cash, large amounts of dollars and other elements that we have passed directly to the Public Prosecutor’s Office.”
He did not give further details.
Venezuela is experiencing a second wave of fuel shortages after severe rationing between May and June was temporarily alleviated by cargo shipped from Iran, an ally of Maduro’s government.
(Reporting by Sarah Kinosian; Editing by Daniel Wallis)
