An American citizen and former executive of Citgo, the US-based subsidiary of Venezuela’s state oil company, has been released from prison, one of his lawyers said Tuesday, just days after a high-level US delegation met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
The release comes hours after Maduro signaled an interest in improving relations with the US amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and concerns in the United States over rising gas prices.
Gustavo Cardenas was one of the so-called “Citgo 6” — five Venezuela-born American citizens and one with US permanent residency — who have been held in Venezuela since 2017, accused of corruption. All were handed lengthy jail sentences.
While attorney Jesus Loreto confirmed the release of Cardenas, he added that “the other five are still detained.” He suggested another detainee could be released, but could not identify the individual.
The New York Times, citing a US official and Venezuelan human rights defenders, earlier reported the release of Cardenas and Jorge Alberto Fernandez, a Cuban American accused of terrorism for bringing a drone into Venezuela last year.
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