Edmundo Gonzalez, who ran against Nicolas Maduro in July's presidential election, says masked men kidnapped his son-in-law in Caracas.
Edmundo GonzalezThe leader of the opposition political parties in Venezuela, has accused masked people of kidnapping his brother-in-law, who has not been found.
Gonzalez, who ran in the country's presidential election in July, made the announcement on Tuesday on social media.
“This morning my father-in-law Rafael Tudares was kidnapped,” Gonzalez he wrote.
“Rafael was going to the school of my grandchildren, aged 7 and 6, in Caracas, to drop them off to start their studies, and he was caught by men wearing hats and black clothes, who put him in a golden car. license plate AA54E2C with him. At this time he is missing.”
Gonzalez himself is currently facing an arrest warrant in Venezuela, where he declared himself the winner of the July 28 presidential race.
This has put him at odds with President Nicolas Maduro, who also said victory. Maduro is expected to be sworn in for a third term on Friday.
Critics and other opponents of Maduro's government have criticized the election and the government's results, which they maintain were not transparent and fair.
Pre-election polls show that Maduro is trailing Gonzalez on the ground. But as soon as the polls closed, the country's electoral authorities announced that Maduro was the winner, without releasing the previous results.
Venezuela's opposition says central media shows Gonzalez beating Maduro by two grades to one, and has published what appear to be documents online.
That raised doubts about the legitimacy of his victory, and protesters flooded the streets in cities like Caracas after the vote.
The government has also been accused of leading violence against protesters and political opponents after the election.
About 2,000 people were initially arrested, and 23 were killed, despite the Maduro government's recent claims. release 1,515 of those arrested. His rule has been plagued by allegations of political repression and human rights abuses, including torture and arbitrary detention.
In September, Venezuelan prosecutors charged Gonzalez with conspiracy, usurpation and forgery, and the court issued a verdict. arrest warrant.
The opposition leader fled the country and went into exile in Spain. But he promised to return to Venezuela.
The Venezuelan government has repeatedly said that Gonzalez will be arrested if he returns.
Maduro and his allies say that Gonzalez and other members of the opposition worked with foreign countries to destabilize the country.
In early January, Gonzalez left Spain to seek support for a trip through America and put pressure on the Maduro government.
He has already visited Argentina and Uruguay, and on Monday, he met with US President Joe Biden, whose government recognized Gonzalez as the official president elected in November.
While regional leaders have expressed skepticism about Maduro's claims of victory and criticism to break for the protesters, it is still unclear what the chances are of Gonzalez's replacement.