Captured American Shown on Venezuelan State TV
Captured American Shown on Venezuelan State TV
(Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan state media aired what it said was the interrogation of a former U.S. army officer captured during an apparent attempt to invade the country and overthrow President Nicolas Maduro.
The American, Luke Denman, said in the video recording that he had planned to secure an airport for the entry of two planes, one of which would take Maduro to the U.S. It wasn’t clear whether Denman was speaking under duress.
Denman said he was hired by Silvercorp USA’s Jordan Goudreau, who had signed a contract with opposition leader Juan Guaido. He said was offered as much as $100,000 for the job.
“I had to make sure to take control of the airport to make a safe transfer of Maduro to the plane,” Denman, 34, says on the tape, wearing a sweatshirt and sitting in front of a concrete wall. “I thought I was helping Venezuelans take control of their country.”
In March the U.S. said it would offer a $15 million reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest. Guaido and his aides have denied any connection to Goudreau or the weekend’s events.
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