Venezuela AG to summon Gonzalez Urrutia over 'usurpation of powers'
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Venezuela's Attorney General says the far-right attempted to undermine electoral authorities, orchestrated a major cyberattack, and published false data on an unofficial platform.
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Venezuela's Attorney General Tarek William Saab speaks during a press conference following the Supreme Court's certification of President Nicolas Maduro's reelection at the Public Prosecutor's Office headquarters in Caracas on August 23, 2024. (AFP)
Former Venezuelan presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia will be summoned to testify regarding his involvement in the creation of a website through which Venezuela's far-right reportedly disseminated false election results for the July 28 presidential elections, announced Attorney General Tarek William Saab on Friday.
"He must appear. We expect him to do so. He should speak consistently about what happened before, during, and after July 28, when he marked several moments of disobedience to our institutions," Saab said.
The investigation into Urrutia will be led by the 58th Prosecutor’s Office, which specializes in cybercrime and will be supported by other agencies to identify servers, users, and other key details involved in the case.
Saab pointed out that Venezuela’s far-right contested the July 28 election results, attempted to undermine electoral authorities, orchestrated a major cyberattack, and published false data on an unofficial platform.
Earlier in August, the Prosecutor’s Office launched a criminal investigation against Gonzalez Urrutia and fellow opposition leader Maria Corina Machado—who was barred from running—to determine their roles in crimes related to the usurpation of authority, spreading false information to incite unrest, encouraging disobedience of the law, incitement to insurrection, criminal conspiracy, and related offenses.
In hearings before the Supreme Court’s Electoral Chamber, initiated by President Nicolas Maduro's challenge, the parties backing Gonzalez Urrutia's candidacy admitted they lacked the evidence to verify their claims of electoral fraud.
Saab also underscored that Gonzalez Urrutia and other far-right figures bear responsibility for the 27 deaths and 129 injuries that occurred during the violent unrest on July 29 and 30.
The Venezuelan Supreme Court released on Thursday its final ruling on President Nicolas Maduro's disputed appeal involving the presidential elections held on July 28.
After verifying the Court's jurisdiction to settle electoral problems, Judge Caryslia Rodriguez certified the results of the elections given by Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) in an unconstrained and unequivocal way, confirming Maduro's presidential win.
Gonzalez Urrutia urges Maduro to 'step aside'
Earlier this week, Gonzalez Urrutia announced that he is ready to negotiate a transition and urged the incumbent to "step aside".
"Mr. Nicolas Maduro, respect what all Venezuelans have decided... You and your government should step aside... I am ready for dialogue," Gonzalez Urrutia, a retired diplomat, declared in a video message posted on social media.
"Every day that you hinder the democratic transition, Venezuelans suffer from a country in crisis, and without freedom. Clinging to power only makes the suffering of our people worse. Our time has come," he said.
Gonzalez Urrutia has not been seen publicly in weeks, while Machado appeared at an opposition rally in Caracas last week. The protest was the latest in a series following the July election, in which Maduro claimed victory for a third six-year term.
Maduro accused Gonzalez Urrutia, who last appeared in public at a protest on July 30, of trying to flee the country.
"He's hiding in a cave. And he's preparing his escape from Venezuela. Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia is taking the money and going to Miami," the incumbent president told supporters at a rally outside the Miraflores presidential palace.
He has called for Machado and Gonzalez Urrutia to be arrested, accusing them of seeking to foment a "coup d'etat."
The National Electoral Council (CNE) had announced incumbent President Nicolas Maduro as the winner with 52% of votes, but the results had been met with rejection from the opposition, the United States, the European Union, and several Latin American countries, calling on Venezuelan authorities to publish election data.
The CNE confirmed that it has been unable to release the vote breakdown due to a "cyber terrorist attack" on its systems.
The opposition contends that its own tally of polling station results showed Gonzalez Urrutia, 74, securing more than two-thirds of the votes. But Venezuela's Electoral Chamber has confirmed that the candidate has defied a Supreme Court order by failing to appear at a hearing to present the voting records from the July 28 presidential elections.
Maduro's win also sparked nationwide Western-backed riots and violence, which left dozens killed, injured, and detained.
Read more: Venezuelan top court confirms Maduro's presidential victory
