Senator Rick Scott and Senator Marco Rubio introduce legislation to increase the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Nicolas Maduro.
The Securing Timely Opportunities for Payment and Maximizing Awards for Detaining Unlawful Regime Officials (STOP MADURO) Act would increase the maximum reward amount from $15 million to a maximum of $100 million for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Maduro.
This comes after the July 28 vote in which Maduro was declared the winner despite strong evidence that opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez won by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, which drew international condemnation that the vote lacked transparency.
"The Venezuelan people overwhelmingly voted for a new day of freedom and democracy on July 28 when they elected Edmundo Gonzalez in an effort led by opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. It's clear Maduro will not step down on his own, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill to rid Venezuela and the world of Maduro's oppression and make way for President-elect Gonzalez to bring democracy, freedom and opportunity back to Venezuela," Senator Rick Scott said.
The reward would be paid out by the federal government using seized assets already being withheld from Maduro, officials of the Maduro regime and their co-conspirators, not taxpayer funds.
