Chile accuses top Venezuelan official of orchestrating murder of dissident

Chile accused President Nicolás Maduro’s second-in-command, Diosdado Cabello, of giving the order to kill a dissident in Santiago last year. The hit was allegedly carried out by a transnational Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua.

On January 23, Attorney General Ángel Valencia announced that a protected witness had told investigators that Cabello, Venezuela’s current Interior Minister, ordered the killing of Ronald Ojeda, a former lieutenant in the armed forces who had allegedly conspired to overthrow the Maduro regime.

Ojeda was found dead on March 1, 2024, 10 days after being abducted. The 32 year old had been living in exile in Santiago since 2017 and he was granted political asylum in 2023. 

Speaking to Chilean broadcaster Tele13Radio, Valencia said that three witnesses testifying in the investigation “attribute the order [of Ojeda’s murder] to Venezuelan government authorities, and at least one who has his identity withheld would say that the order had come from Mr. Diosdado Cabello.”

Venezuela’s Interior Minister, Diosdado Cabello.
Image Source: Infobae Colombia via X

Last week, Chilean authorities conducted large-scale raids in the Santiago suburbs which led to the arrest of more than a dozen members linked to Ojeda’s murder, as reported by Reuters.

Chile’s Interior Minister, Carolina Tohá, said that the Chilean government will not consider breaking diplomatic ties with Venezuela despite Attorney General Valencia’s accusations against the Venezuelan leader.

According to newspaper La Tercera, Tohá said: “The day you cut relations is great news, sounds very good, the next day Justice does not advance any further, investigations are not facilitated, the condition of Chilean migrants who are there or Venezuelans who are here does not improve.”

However, Tohá also publicly announced the possibility of bringing the case to the International Criminal Court if the links between Ojeda’s murder and senior commanders of the Venezuelan government are proven.

Ojeda’s Abduction and Murder

From exile, Ojeda continued to criticise the Maduro government. In January of 2024, he appeared on a list of 33 active and former soldiers accused of plotting a terrorist “conspiracy” against Maduro.

On February 21, 2024, Ojeda was abducted at his apartment at 3:15AM, as shown by CCTV footage from the night, which seems to show three men in Chilean police uniforms and riot gear taking a barefoot Ojeda.

Former First Lieutenant Ronald Ojeda
Image source: Agustín Antonetti via X

His body was found in a suitcase in the suburbs of the Chilean capital on March 1.

According to InSight Crime’s Venezuela Investigative Unit, Ojeda’s kidnapping and subsequent murder showed an “unusual level of sophistication” for the criminal group.

The police uniforms, a lack of ransom request, and the fact that Ojeda was taken from his home rather than a public place, set his abduction apart from Tren de Aragua’s usual kidnapping style.

At the time, Ojeda’s murder sparked concerns that the Maduro regime was adopting tactics utilized by Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping –both close allies to Maduro– of going after dissidents on foreign soil.

Tren de Aragua

Tren de Aragua, the gang reportedly associated with Ojeda’s murder, is Venezuela’s most powerful homegrown criminal group, as per InSight Crime.

The group started as a prison gang in the state of Aragua, but has expanded across Latin America alongside the roughly 8 million Venezuelans who have fled their country. The group now poses a true transnational security threat.

As it gained presence beyond Venezuela, Tren de Aragua’s activities have included extortion, kidnapping, human trafficking, migrant smuggling, and illegal mining, among others.

After Ojeda’s murder, Chilean president Gabriel Boric had vowed to dismantle the group, affirming they would “chase them through land, sea and sky.”

Most recently, US President Donald Trump designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization upon taking office.