A retired U.S. agent’s secret bid to flip Nicolás Maduro’s pilot and capture the Venezuelan leader collapsed after the pilot refused and publicly reaffirmed loyalty.
MIAMI — A covert U.S. operation to lure Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro into capture unfolded like a spy thriller, involving a Homeland Security agent, encrypted chats, private jets, and a Venezuelan air force officer at the heart of the president’s inner circle.
According to interviews with current and former U.S. officials, agent Edwin Lopez, then stationed at the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic, secretly tried to recruit Gen. Bitner Villegas — Maduro’s chief pilot — to divert the president’s aircraft to a location where U.S. forces could arrest him. In exchange, Lopez promised the pilot wealth and protection.
Lopez continued his efforts even after retiring in July 2025, sending messages that referenced the U.S. government’s $50 million bounty for Maduro. But the plot failed when Villegas rebuffed Lopez, declaring, “We Venezuelans are cut from a different cloth. The last thing we are is traitors.”
In a later attempt to unsettle Caracas, U.S.-linked figures posted a doctored image of Villegas online, sparking rumors of his detention.
Days later, he reappeared on state television beside Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, reaffirming loyalty to Maduro.