Venezuelan authorities announced on Thursday that they are offering $100,000 (about 97,300 euros) for information leading to the capture of opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, who left the country to go into exile in Spain and is now heading to Argentina.
González Urrutia, who insists he defeated Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro at the polls in July, is expected to arrive in Buenos Aires this Friday, a presidential source there told AFP.
«Our tour of Latin America begins. First stop: Argentina,” González Urrutia wrote in X, sharing a statement in which he said he would meet with Argentine leader Javier Milei on Saturday and calling on Venezuelans to demonstrate in the central Plaza de Mayo.
The 75-year-old has pledged to return to his country to be sworn in as president on January 10 in place of Maduro, who is scheduled to be sworn in that day with the backing of loyal military personnel.
The Venezuelan police published a photo of the former diplomat, until then little known, on social media on Thursday with the word “Wanted” below the image.
Judicial sources confirmed to AFP that the poster will be displayed at airports and police checkpoints throughout the country.
Gonzales Urrutia fled to Spain in September after Maduro declared himself the winner in the July 28 elections in the country, which is experiencing economic difficulties and has harshly repressed dissidents.
Spain granted him asylum on December 20 after Venezuela announced conspiracy and organized crime charges against him.
Venezuela declared Maduro the winner of a third six-year term in July elections, but the opposition protested, saying it has detailed electoral college numbers showing González Urrutia won handily.
The government has resisted intense pressure at home and abroad to release election results proving its claim of victory.
Street protests erupted after the election and degenerated into clashes with police, with 28 people dead, 200 injured and more than 2,400 arrested.
At least three detainees died in prison, while nearly 1,400 of those originally arrested were released.
Maduro is a former bus driver handpicked by the late socialist icon Hugo Chávez to succeed him after his death in 2013.
Maduro has overseen the oil-rich country’s fall into economic ruin and has been accused of acting like a dictator as he represses dissent and clings to power.
Only a handful of countries, including Venezuelan ally Russia, have recognized Maduro as the winner of the July election.
Argentina does not recognize Maduro’s re-election, along with the United States, the European Union and several other Latin American countries.
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