PUNISHMENT

U.S. Sanctions Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s Son

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin accused Nicolás Ernesto Maduro Guerra of aiding his father’s regime.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has announced sanctions against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s son for aiding his father to keep his “authoritarian regime” intact. The sanctions against 29-year-old Nicolás Ernesto Maduro Guerra will freeze any U.S. assets he has and bar American firms from working with him. Guerra is currently a member of the pro-government Constituent Assembly, which opposes Juan Guaidó’s party in the National Assembly. Mnuchin also accused Guerra of censorship and participating in propaganda on behalf of his fathers’s government. “Maduro's regime was built on fraudulent elections, and his inner circle lives in luxury off the proceeds of corruption while the Venezuelan people suffer,” Mnuchin said in a statement. “Maduro relies on his son Nicolasito and others close to his authoritarian regime to maintain a stranglehold on the economy and suppress the people of Venezuela.” Guaidó is seen by the U.S. and other Western leaders as the country’s legitimate ruler, despite Maduro acting as the head of the country.