Alex Saab, a close associate of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, has reportedly been detained in Caracas during a joint operation by Venezuela’s intelligence agency and the FBI. The 54-year-old Colombian-Venezuelan businessman, long considered Maduro’s frontman, was taken into custody at a luxury home in the capital, according to reports. Billionaire media mogul Raúl Gorrín, owner of the Globovisión TV channel, was also reportedly detained at the same address.
A US official told Reuters that Saab’s detention resulted from collaboration between US and Venezuelan authorities, and that he is expected to be extradited to the US in the coming days. However, Saab’s lawyer, Luigi Giuliano, dismissed the reports as “fake news”, telling Colombia’s El Espectador newspaper that his client was “doing fine in Caracas”. A representative for Gorrín told the New York Times that the businessman was free as of Wednesday evening.
Intelligence sources told Colombian radio station Caracol that Saab was taken into custody at about 2am and is being held at the detention centre of the Bolivarian national intelligence service (Sebin). Saab had been stripped of his position as minister for industry and national production on 16 January by interim leader Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former number two.
Saab was indicted in the US in 2019 for allegedly being part of a corruption racket involving $350m of government money. He was arrested in Cape Verde in 2020, extradited to the US in 2021, and released in December 2023 as part of a prisoner swap. He returned to Venezuela and was made a minister by Maduro in 2024, before being removed by Rodríguez. Early last month, Saab was accused of contracting “shadow fleet” oil tankers to evade a US naval blockade.
The reported detention highlights the volatile political situation in Venezuela one month after Maduro’s downfall. US President Donald Trump has claimed the US is “running” the country and warned Rodríguez could face a worse fate than Maduro if she fails to do Washington’s bidding. Since taking power, Rodríguez has removed several members of Maduro’s cabinet and security apparatus, but key figures like interior minister Diosdado Cabello remain in power.
