Irish Citizen Among Prisoners Released Following Nicolas Maduro's US Capture

AN IRISH PERSON was amongst those released from Venezuelan prisons after the US captured and arrested the former president of the country Nicolas Maduro. The Department of Foreign Affairs today confirmed that it provided consular assistance to the citizen who was involved. It’s understood that the person was released via a plane that carried ex-prisoners from multiple countries, which landed in in Prague over the weekend. Reuters reported initially on the flight. Advertisement One of the prisoners released was a Czech citizen who was detained by Venezuelan authorities who’d accused him of planning to take part in a plot to kill Maduro. The Czech Foreign Minister Petr Macinka said that a group of prisoners were released, which included nationals from Ireland, Romania, Germany, Albania, Ukraine and the Netherlands. “After several weeks of intense negotiations, we managed to secure (his) release,” Macinka said of the Czech citizen. Venezuela has said that more than 400 people have been released but rights groups have reported that the figure is smaller. The group Foro Penal said two days ago that the number released since 8 January is 139.