Venezuela To Ask Spain for Extradition of Leopoldo Lopez

On Wednesday, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro announced that his administration will ask Spain to extradite Leopoldo Lopez, a fugitive from justice who is linked to the organization of violent operations and criminal gangs in Caracas City.

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He is the "main propitiator of coups d'état, terrorist actions, and criminal violence... We will request his extradition and we expect the Spanish government to respect international law and not be complicit in terrorism and violence against the peace of Venezuelans," the Bolivarian President said.

"A good part of the terrorist attacks were prepared in advance, financed, and directed through virtual means from Madrid," Maduro added referring to the results of an investigation conducted by the Attorney General's Office into the events that occurred in the Caracas' Cota 905 neighborhood in the past week.

The Venezuelan president also reminded that the opposition can promote different political proposals but without incurring in attempts to destabilize the country.

"One thing is having political, ideological, and diplomatic differences. But another one quite different is planning and financing violence and terrorist actions, which have been fully proven," Maduro explained, stressing that "there will be no impunity but justice for peace to persist in Venezuela," he added.

In 2014, Lopez was tried for organizing "Guarimbas," which are rapid outbursts of violence in urban areas. Due to these terrorist tactics, 43 Venezuelans died. The judges sentenced this U.S.-backed opposition politician to house arrest. However, during the April 2019 coup attempt, he violated this provision and left his home to go underground.

When Lopez was a fugitive from justice, he entered the Spanish ambassador's residence in Caracas and remained there for one year. Then he fled to Spain, where he remains to this day unaccountable to Venezuelan justice.