"CITGO 6" oil executives released to house arrest in Venezuela in apparent goodwill gesture to US
CNN
Five United States citizens and a Venezuelan citizen who were serving prison time in Caracas have been released to house arrest, two lawyers for the men and a former US governor lobbying for their release told CNN.
The group, collectively known as "CITGO 6," consisted of former executives of US-based refinery CITGO. They were arrested in 2017 on embezzlement charges stemming from a never-executed proposal to refinance some $4 billion in CITGO bonds by offering a 50% stake in the company as collateral. Last year, they were sentenced to between 8 and 13 years in prison. Attorneys Maria Alejandra Poleo and Jesus Loreto told CNN the six were released from prison on Friday night in Caracas and were on their way home.Venezuelan authorities are investigating opposition leader Maria Corina Machado for alleged treason after she expressed support for a US bipartisan bill that seeks to block Washington from doing business with any entity that has commercial ties with the government of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro.
Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the intelligence community, was briefly placed on a Transportation Security Administration list that prompts additional security screening before flights after her overseas travel patterns and foreign connections triggered a government algorithm earlier this year, three sources familiar with the matter told CNN.