US Navy SEAL Wilbert Joseph Castaneda Arrested in Venezuela for Alleged Maduro Assassination Plot

Photo byVenazulan Govt

Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello reported the arrest of a US Navy SEAL alongside two Spanish citizens allegedly linked to intelligence agencies.

The foreign citizens are accused of plotting to assassinate President Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials.

At a press conference on Saturday at the ministry’s headquarters, in front of some of the 400 seized firearms linked to the reported plot, Cabello accused Wilbert Joseph Castañeda, an active duty US sailor, of leading the effort on behalf of US intelligence.

“Castañeda is the head of the operation, placed here by the CIA,” said Cabello.

In his press conference, Cabello said the alleged assassination plot was uncovered after authorities were tipped off about a weapons shipment from the US that was illegally smuggled into the country.

“The US is behind this operation. The US is handing over these firearms, they allow them to freely circulate so they can arrive in Venezuela and be used in an operation,” said Cabello. He claimed the weapon parts were disguised in containers to be assembled upon arrival.

The Venezuelan interior minister said the discovery of the firearms unraveled a “terrorist plot” that included an effort to kill the president alongside high-ranking figures such as Vice President Delcy Rodríguez and Cabello himself. He added that the conspirators aimed to attack public infrastructure, including water supplies, electricity, and transportation.

Cabello said security forces had also uncovered a conspiracy to launch grenades at the Argentinian Embassy in Caracas in order to generate a diplomatic incident to be blamed on the Maduro government. Venezuela recently suspended the agreement that allowed Brazil to assume custody of the Argentine diplomatic residence in Caracas where six individuals tied to the US-backed opposition had sought asylum fleeing charges.

Venezuelan authorities likewise arrested five other foreigners in connection to the denounced plans, including two Spanish citizens, José María Basoa Valdovinos and Andrés Martínez Adasme, who were accused of having ties to Spain’s National Intelligence Center.

Two other US citizens, David Estrella and Aaron Barrett Logan, were also detained on charges of being “hackers.” Cabello went on to announce the arrest of a Czech individual by the name of Jan Darmovzal who was supposedly brought into the conspiracy as a mercenary.

The US State Department issued a reaction denying the allegations, calling them “categorically false”.

The Navy on Monday released the service details of a sailor who was detained by Venezuelan authorities at the end of August after a top official in the country alleged he was part of a plot to assassinate President Nicolás Maduro and overthrow his regime.

Wilbert Joseph Castaneda, who has been held in Venezuela for more than two weeks, is a petty officer first class and Navy SEAL who has been in the service since 2007, according to the records provided by the Navy. A U.S. official had earlier confirmed that an enlisted sailor was detained late last month as the country is embroiled in a disputed election that Maduro claims to have won.

However, both State and Defense department officials have said that there is no U.S. government plan to overthrow Maduro, and a State Department spokesperson said that "the United States continues to support a democratic solution to the political crisis in Venezuela," in an email Monday.

The State Department spokesperson also confirmed that they were aware of "unconfirmed reports of two additional U.S. citizens detained in Venezuela."

Navy records for Castaneda, who appears to have first been detained, but not identified, on Aug. 30, show that the sailor joined his first SEAL team in 2009 and bounced between teams on the East and West coasts throughout his career. He was promoted to petty officer first class in June 2013.

Typically, the Navy will not offer further details of what team a SEAL is assigned to out of security concerns.

Shortly after his detention became public, a U.S. official told Military.com that Castaneda was "not on official travel or approved leave."

CBS News reported that Castaneda had also been stripped of his Special Warfare insignia -- commonly known as the Trident -- indicating that the elite warfare community was in the process of removing him from its ranks.

The records offered by the Navy also do not back up Cabello's claim that Castaneda deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq and Colombia. The Navy's data does not show that Castaneda was awarded either the Iraq or Afghanistan campaign medals -- though those records are not always complete.

The Navy's data on Castaneda does show that he has a track record of deployments, with four Sea Service Deployment ribbons, two Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary medals, and an Armed Forces Service Medal.

His records also do not show any combat or valor awards, though he did receive three Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.

The Venezuelan's allegation that Castaneda, along with the five others, were plotting to overthrow Maduro is not as far-fetched as it may seem.

In 2020, a former U.S. Green Beret, Jordan Goudreau, helped arm and train a group of around 300 Venezuelan army deserters in neighboring Colombia who were then supposed to sneak into Venezuela and help ignite a rebellion against Maduro.

The plan fell apart, several combatants were killed by Venezuelan security forces, and two of Goudreau's U.S. Special Forces compatriots were arrested by the Maduro regime.

Goudreau was arrested in July 2024 in New York on federal arms smuggling charges and is now awaiting trial.

Venezuela is also simply a dangerous country for Americans, especially given the increasing sanctions against allies of Maduro by the U.S. The State Department has long warned American citizens not to travel to Venezuela, citing "a high risk of wrongful detention."

The travel warning also notes that Venezuela's "security forces have detained U.S. citizens for up to five years" and the U.S. "is not generally notified of the detention of U.S. citizens in Venezuela or granted access to U.S. citizen prisoners there."

Last year, the Biden administration signed off on a deal in which Maduro released 10 Americans in exchange for a presidential pardon for Alex Saab, who was being held in custody on money laundering charges and, according to prosecutors, was helping the Venezuelan strongman avoid U.S. sanctions.