The Justice Department today announced the seizure of a Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft owned and operated for the benefit of Venezuela president Nicolás Maduro Moros and persons affiliated with him. The aircraft was seized in the Dominican Republic and transferred to the Southern District of Florida at the request of the United States based on violations of U.S. export control and sanctions laws.
“This morning, the Justice Department seized an aircraft we allege was illegally purchased for $13 million through a shell company and smuggled out of the United States for use by Nicolás Maduro and his cronies,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said. “The Department will continue to pursue those who violate our sanctions and export controls to prevent them from using American resources to undermine the national security of the United States.”
In August 2019, the President issued Executive Order 13884, which prohibits U.S. persons from engaging in transactions with persons who have acted or purported to act directly or indirectly for or on behalf of, the Government of Venezuela, including as a member of the Maduro regime. To protect U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, the Department of Commerce has also imposed export controls for items intended, entirely or in part, for a Venezuelan military or military-intelligence end user.
According to the U.S. investigation, in late 2022 and early 2023, persons affiliated with Maduro allegedly used a Caribbean-based shell company to conceal their involvement in the illegal purchase of the Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft (which at the time was valued at approximately $13 million) from a company based in the Southern District of Florida.
The aircraft was then illegally exported from the United States to Venezuela through the Caribbean in April 2023. Since May 2023, the Dassault Falcon, bearing tail number T7-ESPRT, has flown almost exclusively to and from a military base in Venezuela and has been used for the benefit of Maduro and his representatives, including to transport Maduro on visits to other countries.
The Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security Miami Field Office is investigating the case, along with the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) El Dorado Task Force Miami.