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WASHINGTON — Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning 21 security and cabinet-level officials aligned with Nicolas Maduro. These individuals are sanctioned pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13692, as amended, for being current or former officials of the Government of Venezuela. They have supported and carried out Maduro’s orders to repress civil society in his efforts to fraudulently declare himself the winner of Venezuela’s July 28 presidential election, thus ignoring the will of the overwhelming majority of Venezuelan voters who elected Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as their next president.

Following the election, Venezuelan security forces have arbitrarily arrested democratic opposition supporters en masse, violently suppressed protests, and denied individuals the right to assemble peacefully without reprisal. These tactics also involved issuing an unjustified arrest warrant against president-elect Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, prompting his departure from Venezuela.  

“Maduro and his representatives’ repressive actions in the wake of the Venezuelan presidential election are a desperate attempt to silence the voices of its citizens,” said Acting Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley T. Smith. “The United States will continue to shine a light on those who seek to use violence and intimidation to undermine democratic governance and the legitimate exercise of free speech.”

Concurrently, the Department of State is taking steps to impose new visa restrictions under Presidential Proclamation 9931 on Maduro-aligned individuals who have undermined the electoral process in Venezuela and/or are responsible for acts of repression. With these actions nearly 2,000 individuals have been identified to date as subject to visa restrictions for their role in undermining democracy, engaging in significant corruption, or violating the human rights of the Venezuelan people. 

VENEZUELAN MILITARY and POLICE OFFICIALs

The individuals sanctioned today are senior Venezuelan officials, including from the Maduro-aligned Bolivarian National Guard (GNB), Bolivarian National Police (BNP), Bolivarian Militia, Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN), and General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM). These individuals are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13692, “Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Venezuela,” as amended, for being current or former officials of the Government of Venezuela. 

GNB Officials

The GNB has led the violent repression following the election. Members of the GNB used their firearms to repress protestors, arrest and beat minors, and carry out arbitrary detentions. The GNB was deployed to control protests, at times taking a leading role beyond its constitutionally assigned responsibilities. The GNB failed to prevent non-state armed groups from harassing and attacking protestors on July 30. Many of the officials designated today are leaders of the GNB’s military districts and operational zones, known as the Strategic Regions for Integral Defense (REDI) and Operational Zones of Integral Defense (ZODI).

• Dilio Guillermo Rodriguez Diaz is a Capital REDI commander. Previously, he served as the commander of Capital 81 of the ZODI and as the rector of the Bolivarian Military University.
• Jose Yunior Herrera Duarte has served as head of GNB Zone Command No. 51 since 2022.
• Carlos Eduardo Aigster Villamizar has served as commander and division general for Miranda State of the ZODI since 2023. He also served as the commander of GNB Zone Command No. 62 in Bolivar state.
• Jesus Rafael Villamizar Gomez has served as the Central REDI commander since 2024. Previously, he served as La Guaira ZODI commander and as the head of the Presidential Honor Guard. He is suspected of personal enrichment while employed as a high-ranking Venezuelan official.
• Angel Daniel Balestrini Jaramillo previously served as the ZODI Aragua commander.
• Pablo Ernesto Lizano Colmenter previously servedas the ZODI Carabobo commander.
• Luis Gerardo Reyes Rivero previously served as commander and division general for the Yaracuy ZODI.
• Jose Alfredo Rivera Bastardo has served as GNB director of services for Maintenance of Internal Order Division since 2024. He previously served as the commander of ZODI Falcon.
• Alberto Alexander Matheus Melendez has served as the GNB director of Logistics Division since 2024. He previously served as he chief of Venezuela’s National Anti-Drug Command.
• Jesus Ramon Fernandez Alayon is the director of Operational Readiness of the GNB. He also held previous roles as the chief of the Coastal Surveillance Command and as the commander of GNB Command Zone in Lara.

BNP, SEBIN, DGCIM, and Militia Officials

Venezuela’s large security apparatus has also contributed to violence following the election. The BNP is a Venezuelan security agency responsible for harassment and arbitrary detentions, including minors and in response to protests in rejection of the official information on the electoral results disseminated by the current President of the Venezuelan National Electoral Council.SEBIN has detained journalists who report on the electoral process, repression, and the abuse of power. In addition, the Bolivarian Militia is a special corps composed of the military reserves and the territorial militia with the purpose of supporting the Venezuelan Armed Forces. 

• Ruben Dario Santiago Servigna has served as brigadier general of the BNP since 2023. He is also the officer in charge at the national level of the implementation of the electoral operation of citizen security.
• Alexis Jose Rodriguez Cabello is the director of SEBIN. He is the cousin of Maduro’s Minister of Interior, Justice, and Peace, Diosdado Cabello Rondon, who has been sanctioned by OFAC since 2018.
• Javier Jose Marcana Tabata is the head of the DGCIM and the Presidential Honor Guard.
• Orlando Ramon Romero Bolivar has commanded the Bolivarian Militia since 2024. He also previously served as the Central REDI commander.

VENEZUELAN OFFICIALs FROM VARIOUS MINISTRIES

The following individuals are Maduro-aligned officials of various ministries, responsible for executing policies supporting anti-democratic acts. These individuals are being designated today pursuant to E.O. 13692, “Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Venezuela,” as amended, for being current or former officials of the Government of Venezuela. 

• Anibal Eduardo Coronado Millan has served as minister of Maduro’s Office of the President since April 2024 and as Government Performance Monitor of Maduro’s Office of the President. He is also the “chief of government” in the Insular Territory of Francisco de Miranda. Previously, he served in the Presidential Honor Guard. Maduro’s Office of the President has carried out Maduro’s directive to commit electoral fraud, repress Venezuelans, and continue anti-democratic acts.
• William Alfredo Castillo Bolle has served as Maduro’s vice-minister of Anti-Blockade Policies in the Venezuelan Ministry of Economy, Finances, and External Trade since 2022.
• Ricardo Jose Menendez Prieto has been Maduro’s vice president of Planning in the Office of the Vice President since 2014. He previously served as Minister of Higher Education, Minister of Industry, and Minister of Science, Technology, and Intermediary Industry.
• Freddy Alfred Nazaret Nanez Contreras is Maduro’s minister of People’s Power for Communication and the sectoral vice president of Communication, Culture, and Tourism. He has served as sectoral vice president for Communication and Culture and Minister of Communication and Information. Previously, he served as president of the Venezuelan National Television.
• Daniella Desiree Cabello Contreras has served as Maduro’s president of the Venezuelan Export Promotion Agency since September 2024. The Venezuelan Export Promotion Agency is tasked with diversifying Venezuelan exports and with jointly drafting the Unified Protocol for Non-Oil Exports and Related Activities, which creates a single payment for exports from Venezuela. She previously served as the president of Venezuela’s Country Brand Foundation who reported directly to Maduro’s executive vice president, Delcy Eloina Rodriguez Gomez, who has been sanctioned by OFAC since 2018. She is also the daughter of Diosdado Cabello Rondon.
• Julio Jose Garcia Zerpa has been Maduro’s minister of Penitentiary Services since 2024. Previously, he served as deputy for the state of Tachira and holds the position of first vice president of the Finance Commission of the Maduro-aligned National Assembly (AN). Many opposition figures and other political prisoners are also unjustly imprisoned. Venezuelan prisons have been criticized for depriving prisoners of their liberties, critical overcrowding, procedural delay, and prison neglect. In June, inmates from prisons across Venezuela led a hunger strike, demanding humanitarian measures and transfers to facilities closer to their relatives or where they were previously held.
• America Valentina Perez Davilahas served as second vice president of the AN. The AN has supported Maduro’s fraudulent claim of victory in the July 28 presidential election.

SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS

As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated persons described above, and of any entities that are owned directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by them, individually, or with other blocked persons, that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons. 

In addition, financial institutions and other persons that engage in certain transactions or activities with the sanctioned entities and individuals may expose themselves to sanctions or be subject to an enforcement action. The prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any designated person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person. 

The power and integrity of OFAC sanctions derive not only from OFAC’s ability to designate and add persons to the SDN List, but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior. For information concerning the process for seeking removal from an OFAC list, including the SDN List, please refer to OFAC’s Frequently Asked Question 897 here. For detailed information on the process to submit a request for removal from an OFAC sanctions list, please click here.

Click here for more information on the individuals identified today.

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