The arrest of Guanipa, a 60-year-old former member of parliament and close ally of opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, comes amid rising tensions ahead of Sunday’s election.
Guanipa, like Machado, went into hiding after the July 2024 presidential vote, which the opposition and much of the international community believes opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia rightfully won.
Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello linked Guanipa’s arrest to what the government called a foiled plot by foreign mercenaries to sabotage Sunday’s vote for members of parliament and 24 state governors.
“He is one of the leaders of this terrorist network,” Cabello said on state television, adding that the plan to disrupt the vote was detailed on four telephones and a laptop found in Guanipa’s possession.
