Opposition leader Edmundo González’s son-in-law kidnapped

“Rafael was on his way to the school of my seven and six-year-old grandchildren in Caracas to drop them off at the start of classes when he was intercepted by men dressed in black, wearing masks,” shared Edmundo Gonzalez via platform X.

They put him in a gold-colored van and took him away.

After the presidential election in Venezuela last July, González claimed victory. The USA and several Latin American countries recognize him as the winner of the election. However, the loyal electoral authority declared the authoritarian head of state Nicolás Maduro, who has been in power for almost twelve years, as the election winner.

Arrest warrant against González in Venezuela

Maduro will be sworn in for another term in office on Friday. González left for Spain at the beginning of September and applied for political asylum there. The 75-year-old had announced that he would return to his homeland and be sworn in as president of the South American country on Friday. However, there is an arrest warrant for him in Venezuela. If he enters the country, he will be arrested and tried for sabotage, conspiracy and usurpation of office, said Venezuela’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello.

Protests by opposition supporters have been violently suppressed by the state in the past. According to the non-governmental organization Foro Penal, there were almost 1,800 political prisoners by the end of the year.