The Daily Journal.- Secretary General of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), Diosdado Cabello, made statements this Monday regarding the legal status and nationality of former Minister of Industries Alex Saab, who was deported to the United States last Saturday.
Cabello asserted that Saab carried false documentation and that his departure from the country was carried out in strict accordance with the current constitutional framework.
During a press conference, the political leader categorically denied that Saab holds Venezuelan nationality, revealing alleged irregularities in his identification records.
“Alex Saab is not Venezuelan; he is a citizen of Colombian origin who always presented an identity card that was not legal and had no support whatsoever within Saime,” he stated.
Cabello placed particular emphasis on the legal grounds supporting the administrative measure carried out by the State, directly invoking Article 271 of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. This constitutional provision expressly prohibits the denial of extradition for foreign nationals under investigation or found responsible for serious crimes of transnational significance, including money laundering, drug-related crimes, international organized crime, offenses against the public assets of other states, and human rights violations.
The spokesman specified that the transfer of the businessman responds to the prosecution of specific transnational crimes such as money laundering, drug trafficking, international organized crime, and offenses against the public assets of other states.
“It is in our Constitution; we cannot refuse the extradition of a foreign citizen who is under investigation for those crimes,” he added.
The PSUV secretary general insisted that the businessman did not meet any of the legal requirements established by the Administrative Service for Identification, Migration and Foreigners (Saime) to be legitimately considered a Venezuelan citizen.
According to the information provided, these inconsistencies became evident during the judicial questioning phases preceding his deportation.
Rise and Fall of Alex Saab
Alex Saab’s relationship with the Venezuelan government began in 2011 through housing agreements and became firmly established in 2016 when he became the principal supplier of subsidized CLAP food products. In 2019, U.S. authorities formally charged him with money laundering and overbilling schemes. On June 12, 2020, he was arrested in Cape Verde following an Interpol Red Notice; from that point onward, Caracas assumed his defense, arguing that he possessed diplomatic immunity as a “special envoy.”
After a 16-month legal battle, he was extradited to the United States in October 2021. His trial moved forward in Florida after U.S. courts dismissed his diplomatic status claim.
The case took a dramatic turn on December 20, 2023, when he was released after receiving a pardon from Joe Biden. His release came in exchange for the handover of 10 U.S. citizens and nearly twenty Venezuelan political prisoners. Upon returning to Caracas, he assumed the presidency of the International Center for Productive Investment in January 2024 and later the Ministry of Industries of Venezuela.
Following Nicolás Maduro’s detention on January 3 of this year, Saab was removed from office. Finally, on Saturday, May 16, Venezuelan authorities announced his deportation.
