Photo composition showing one of María Corina Machado's campaign SUVs allegedly vandalized, with a photo (bottom lower corner) of Machado (right) next to Magalli Meda, and a miniature campaign photo of far-right candidate Edmundo González in a yellow Volkswagen Beetle going downhill. Photo: Orinoco Tribune.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—The attorney general of Venezuela, Tarek William Saab, reported that María Corina Machado hired a member of her own party, Vente Venezuela, to carry out the alleged attack on her vehicles that the far-right politician had denounced as an “attempt on her life.”
On Saturday, July 20, Attorney General Saab reported that the Public Ministry appointed the 19th National Prosecutor’s Office to investigate the false flag orchestrated by Machado against her own SUVs. Machado’s original complaint had been accompanied by a massive social media bot operation and the immediate publication of a letter signed by far-right Latin American politicians, something that plays in favor of the allegation that she had simulated the crime.
The attorney general noted that Machado had claimed without any evidence that the SUVs that she uses to travel had been attacked in order to “attempt on her life her and that of her team members.”
Machado spread a video on social media platforms showing the vehicles that her team used for traveling in the city of Barquisimeto with dents, and with messages such as “No + Bloqueo” (No more blockade) painted on them. Machado has a history of false positives that have been revealed over the years, and her complaints are always considered with suspicion inside Venezuela, both by opposition supporters and by Chavistas. However, such complaints can be easily used to launch international smear campaigns against Chavismo and President Nicolás Maduro.
el @MinpublicoVEN tras la detención de unos de los miembros del equipo de VV designa la #Fiscalía 19 Nac para investigar según su propio testimonio:
el #FalsoPositivo difundido por #MCM quien sim mostrar prueba alguna manifestó que los vehículos que utilizaba para… pic.twitter.com/eW5w9v8LRr
— Tarek William Saab (@TarekWiliamSaab) July 20, 2024
Immediately after Machado’s social media post about the alleged vandalization of her vehicles, many social media users questioned the veracity orf her claims. Many wondered how the incident that happened at night in a heavily guarded affluent neighborhood in Barquisimeto, Lara state, was not recorded by security cameras from the nearby houses or why the alleged perpetrators were not detected by security guards who control the access to the fenced neighborhood where the incident allegedly occurred.
Attorney General Saab also reported that the detained individual has been providing testimony to the authorities in Barquisimeto and would reveal the circumstances of manner, time and place, as well as the amount of money he was paid to carry out the attack. A video was released by the Public Ministry with part of the confession of the arrested Vente Venezuela operator.
“At this time, the individual who had been hired by the political leader [Maria Corina Machado] is declaring in Lara the circumstances of manner, time and place, as well as the amount of money he was paid to fabricate this act, which constitutes a crime of simulation of a punishable act, dissemination of messages that generate anxiety and panic in the society, and money laundering,” Saab wrote on social media.
Unofficial information is circulating on social media that the Attorney General’s Office has in its possession the confession and some evidence that point to Machado associate Magallí Meda for ordering the alleged false flag operation.
Chavistas Warn About Escalation of Media Warfare Against Venezuela’s Elections (+Machado)
“I am (sound redacted), a member of Vente Venezuela for more than three years. I have always been close to Dr. Meda, helping her, escorting her, and supporting her in everything she asked me,” says the detainee in a confession video.
There is an arrest warrant against Meda, issued by the Public Ministry in March for her alleged organization of violence to create chaos in Venezuela ahead of the upcoming presidential elections scheduled for July 28. She and other Vente Venezuela members requested asylum in the embassy of Argentina in Caracas. From the embassy they have continued to conspire against the peace of Venezuela.
For many analysts, the incident demonstrates the level of desperation on the part of Machado’s campaign to try to give oxygen to her candidate, Edmundo González, who was declared “sick” by his inner circle a few days ago, just ahead of the July 28 presidential elections.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/SC
