Overview
- The directive was reported Thursday by the Associated Press and picked up by multiple outlets, saying the Trump administration quietly told federal prosecutors in Miami to pause or not pursue potential criminal probes of Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez.
- The Department of Justice responded that “there never was an investigation on her to close,” creating a sharp factual dispute between current and former U.S. officials and the DOJ statement.
- DEA records reviewed by reporters show Rodríguez appeared in U.S. federal reports and inquiries going back to 2018 that linked her to alleged narcotics trafficking, gold smuggling, and money laundering, though she has not been charged in U.S. courts.
- The reported pause followed a rapid rapprochement with Caracas that included lifting sanctions, recognizing Rodríguez as Venezuela’s leader, and facilitating renewed banking links and U.S. oil investment talks aimed at stabilizing Venezuela.
- Democratic senators and former prosecutors have demanded explanations, warning the move risks politicizing law enforcement, and reporters say similar pauses affected probes involving Colombian president Gustavo Petro, a development that could reshape U.S. leverage and rules for accountability in the region.