CHARLOTTE — The interim leader of Venezuela, who was Nicolás Maduro‘s vice president, says she’s willing to work with the U.S. as they move forward.
Mecklenburg County has a large Venezuelan community.
It’s a moment many Venezuelans who escaped their home country have been waiting for, including Charlotte resident Frank Benitez who Channel 9 spoke with Monday.
He said this is just the beginning.
It’s a historic moment as captured Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were taken in shackles from a detention center to a Manhattan federal courthouse to face a judge on multiple charges, including narco-terrorism.
“I was so, so excited,” Benitez said. “And so happy.”
Benitez moved to the Carolinas from Venezuela nearly 25 years ago. He now calls Charlotte home.
His wife got a text from her uncle over the weekend saying the U.S. was attacking Venezuela.
“She said, ‘that’s my uncle says.’ I said they aren’t attacking Venezuela, they are making Venezuela free,” Benitez said.
Benitez lived under Hugo Chávez’s reign and says Maduro’s government has continued to silence Venezuelans.
“Oh, yeah! They silence, put in jail, or killing people,” he said. “I mean, I saw that before.”
Monday Maduro spoke out in court saying, “I’m innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the president of my country,” before being cut off by the judge.
Venezuela’s vice president Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as interim president Monday. Benitez says Rodríguez is still part of Maduro’s government and urges the U.S. to continue taking action towards democracy.
“The job is not done yet,” said Benitez. “This is the beginning. They took the head.”
He says he hopes to see the day Venezuela becomes a true democracy, so he will feel safe enough to travel back to show his children where he grew up.
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