Clíver Alcalá Cordones
Born (1961-11-21) November 21, 1961
Tenoco, Cojedes, Venezuela
Allegiance Venezuela
Service/branch Venezuelan Army
Rank Major General

Cliver Antonio Alcalá Cordones (born 21 November 1961), is a retired Venezuelan major general and a member of the Bolivarian Army. Clíver Alcalá was one of the soldiers who participated in the attempted coup d'état against President Carlos Andrés Pérez in February 1992, and served as chief of garrison in the cities of both Valencia and Maracay, and finally as general commander of the Integral Defense Region in Guayana (REDI-Guayana). Alcalá Cordones was discharged from the Army on 5 July 2013 during the presidency of Nicolás Maduro.[1]

In 2011, Alcalá was accused by the United States government of being a drug trafficker and a member of the Cartel of the Suns. Alcalá moved from Venezuela to Barranquilla, Colombia in 2018 and emerged as a forceful opponent of Maduro, described as the "ringleader" of the Venezuelan military deserters.[2]

In March 2020, Alcalá turned himself in to US authorities in Barranquilla, Colombia after the US Department of State and the Drug Enforcement Administration offered a US$10 million reward for his capture.[3] He pled guilty in U.S. court in June 2023 to providing aid to the Colombian FARC.[4]

Military career

Caracol Radio reported that investigators and their collaborators that at one point in time; Alcalá had more power than Diosdado Cabello and Nicolás Maduro. This was the result of the conjunction of his narco trafficking segment with the Guajira cartel. A conjunction that was sealed by the marriage between Alcala and Marta González, a niece of Hermágoras González, leader of the La Guajira cartel. Maduro and Diosdado eradicated Alcala as he was becoming a threat to their power and dominance of the cartel as a whole. [5]

Investigations

In September 2011, four Hugo Chávez allies (including Alcalá Cordones) were sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury for allegedly helping FARC obtain weapons and smuggle drugs. It accuses him of using his position to establish an arms-for-drugs route with the FARC.[6][7]

On 18 April 2012, Alcalá Cordones was singled out for being involved in drug trafficking in Venezuela by former magistrate Eladio Aponte Aponte, exiled in Panama, who confessed to having been pressured by Hugo Chávez to condemn Iván Simonovis and having had a friendly relationship with Walid Makled.[8]

According to the Associated Press, since 2019 Cliver Alcalá dedicated himself to coordinating a military plan to overthrow Maduro with the help of American advisers and the support of Silvercorp USA company. Lester Toledo, member of Popular Will, introduced the US military Jordan Goudreau to Alcalá. A group of 300 Venezuelan soldiers was training in the Colombian border. The plans were frustrated after the Colombian police seized an arsenal of weapons of war and then the extradition of Alcalá was requested by the Venezuelan government and by the United States government.[2]

Exile and extradition to the US

Reward poster from the Drug Enforcement Administration

Cliver Alcalá resided in Barranquilla, Colombia from 2018 until his decision to surrender to US authorities in March 2020.[9]

On 26 March 2020, Alcalá assumed responsibility for "a military operation against the Maduro dictatorship", including a shipment of weapons captured in Colombia, claiming that the United States, Colombia and Juan Guaidó officials had signed an agreement to support their efforts to overthrow President Maduro.[10] Guaidó denied knowledge of the event while United States Special Representative to Venezuela Elliott Abrams described Alcalá's statement as "despicable and quite dangerous".[10]

Alcalá is reported to have played a role in planning the unsuccessful May 2020 Macuto Bay raid, which took place after Alcalá was extradited to the United States.[11][12][13]

Arrest

On 27 March 2020, Clíver Alcalá turned himself in before the Colombian National Intelligence Directorate, after the United States Department of Justice included him in a list of solicitors the previous day, offering ten million dollars for his capture and by that of four other senior Venezuelan officials wanted for drug trafficking, including ongoing president Nicolás Maduro.[9] Clíver subsequently turned himself in to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) after agreeing to collaborate with prosecutors, being extradited to the United States.[14]

Alcalá's lawyers lodged a motion in November 2021 to have the charges dismissed along with a statement that US officials at the highest levels of the CIA, Treasury Justice, the National Security Council and the Drug Enforcement Administration were aware of his efforts to overthrow Maduro. The statement said J. J. Rendón and two allies of Juan Guaidó were also aware of Alcalá's coup plan;[15] U.S. officials deny any direct involvement [15][16] and Guaidó representatives stated they had disassociated themselves from Alcalá well before the May 2020 incursion.[17]

In June 2023, Alcalá pled guilty in the U.S. to "two counts of providing material support to a terrorist group and illicit transfer of firearms", with the narcotics charges dropped.[4]

Family and personal life

Cliver Alcalá Cordones was married on 13 May 2012 to Marta González.[18][19]

References

  1. ↑ "Cliver Antonio Alcalá Cordones — New Target". Department of State. 16 March 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  2. 1 2 JOSHUA GOODMAN: Ex-Green Beret led failed attempt to oust Venezuela’s Maduro - AP, 2020-05-01
  3. ↑ "Exgeneral venezolano buscado por Estados Unidos se entregó a la policía en Colombia" (in Spanish). DW. 28 March 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  4. 1 2 Cohen, Luc (30 June 2023). "Venezuela ex-general pleads guilty to US charges of helping FARC". Reuters. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  5. ↑ "Los nexos de Clíver Alcalá y el 'Neñe' Hernández". 28 March 2020.
  6. ↑ "US sanctions Venezuelans for alleged Farc links". BBC. 8 September 2011. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  7. ↑ "Treasury designates four Venezuelan officials for providing arms and security to the FARC" (Press release). U.S. Department of the Treasury. 8 September 2011. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  8. ↑ Venezuela asoma como punto de salida internacional de cocaína (El País)
  9. 1 2 "El general venezolano Clíver Alcalá Cordones se entregó en Colombia y será extraditado a los Estados Unidos". Infobae. 27 March 2020.
  10. 1 2 Long, Gideon (4 April 2020). "Mystery surrounds foiled 'plot' to liberate Venezuela". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 2020-04-05. Retrieved 2020-05-05.
  11. ↑ Goodman, Joshua (1 May 2020). "Ex-Green Beret led failed attempt to oust Venezuela's Maduro". Associated Press. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  12. ↑ Faiola, Anthony; Boburg, Shawn; Herrero, Ana Vanessa (2020-05-10). "Venezuela raid: How an ex-Green Beret and a defecting general planned to capture Maduro". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2020-05-11. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  13. ↑ Freeze, Colin; Dickson, Janice (5 May 2020). "A Canadian-American military man, a failed Venezuela coup and a Twitter video". The Globe and Mail. Toronto and Ottawa. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
  14. ↑ "Cliver Alcalá se entregó a la DEA y fue extraditado a EEUU: Reuters - Noticiero Digital". Noticiero Digital. 27 March 2020.
  15. 1 2 "Alleged Maduro co-conspirator says CIA knew about a 2020 Venezuela coup plan". ABC News. Australia. 29 January 2022. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  16. ↑ "United States President Donald Trump denies US role in what Venezuela says was 'mercenary' incursion". ABC News. Australia. 5 May 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  17. ↑ "'Bay of Piglets': A 'bizarre' plot to capture a president". BBC News. 29 July 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  18. ↑ "6to Poder: Cliver Alcalá Cordones se casó con sobrina de narcotraficante Hermágoras González". Noticiero Digital (in Spanish). 14 May 2020.
  19. ↑ De Jesús, Luis (29 March 2020). "Qué se sabe del «Gordito» González, el narcotraficante que el régimen vincula con Cliver Alcalá" (in Spanish). El Nacional. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
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