
Oil tycoon Wilmer Ruperti showed up for a meeting with Venezuela’s intelligence agency last Thursday. A week later, he’s still in custody, one of his lawyers told Semafor.
“We’ve reached out to everybody trying to get proof of life or some support,” Winston & Strawn’s Cari Stinebower said, adding that officials still haven’t conveyed “how he’s being treated or why he’s being detained.”
Ruperti, who arrived at the meeting with a security detail, is a Venezuelan Italian shipping magnate who trades in petroleum coke. His detainment followed interim President Delcy Rodríguez’s decision to elevate the agency’s longtime chief to defense minister.
“The message is that Venezuela is open for business — but detaining businessmen for days on end without any due process or access to counsel is more old regime,” Stinebower said. “This is not law and order and not conducive of a welcoming business environment.”
The State Department and Energy Department did not respond to requests for comment.
latest_posts
- 1
What to know as New York City nurses strike for a 3rd day - 2
Does physics say that free will doesn't exist? - 3
Who is Adm. Frank 'Mitch' Bradley and what does he have to do with the Venezuela boat strikes? - 4
ACA subsidies latest: Making sense of what's happening with health care after Republicans revolt, forcing a vote on funding extension - 5
BravoCon 2025: How to watch, full schedule and lineup, where to stream free and more
Instructions to Boost Your True capacity with a Brain research Degree
Easy to understand Tech: Cell phones for Old in 2024
Medtronic has 'significant firepower' for multiple acquisitions, executives say
Exploring the Difficulties of Co-Nurturing: Individual Bits of knowledge
At least 490 protesters killed in Iran, activists say
Prehistoric wolf’s gut frozen in time reveals an ice age giant
Video Conferencing Instruments for Virtual Gatherings
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS will fly by Earth Friday. Here are the latest images
Ancient Pompeii construction site reveals the process for creating Roman concrete












