FARC EXTORTION IN VENEZUELA

S E C R E T CARACAS 001059 NOFORN SIPDIS HQSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/31/2028 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER VE CO SUBJECT: FARC EXTORTION IN VENEZUELA Classified By: Political Counselor Francisco Fernandez for Reason 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Gustavo Sposito, (strictly protect throughout) the incoming president of the Tachira State Cattlemen Association, met July 29 with embassy and defense attachQ staff to discuss FARC and ELN criminal operations in Venezuela. Sposito explained how lawlessness along the permeable border with Colombia has left local businessmen vulnerable to extortion by both Colombian guerrillas the FARC and ELN as well as the irregular Venezuelan Bolivarian Liberation Forces (FBL) and organized crime groups. ¶2. (S) To illustrate his allegation of the FARC's complete penetration of Venezuela and its collusion with elements of the BRV, Sposito related a personal story of how in June 2006 he tried to get out from under a FARC extortion scheme. Sposito received a phone call from "Comandante Juan Carlos" of the FARC 45th Front, a few days later a letter was delivered including precise details of his family, their routine and his business activities. Seeking advice on how to deal with what he considered a credible threat, Sposito met with a senior judge in San Cristobal. The judge gave Sposito two cellular phone numbers and instructed him to call them right away. That very afternoon, Sposito was on a flight to Caracas per instructions passed over the phone. ¶3. (S/NF) Sposito was directed to the Santa Monica neighborhood of Caracas where a car took him on a circuitous route through the neighborhood, finally entering the compound of a large house. On the grounds, Sposito noticed vehicles belonging to DISIP (Note: The Directorate of Intelligence and Prevention Services has its headquarters near Santa Monica and is known to operate numerous safehouses. End Note.) Sposito says he was warmly greeted by an older man, "the professor," who claimed to have known his father. The professor apologized and complained that the FARC were getting out of hand. He reassured Sposito that "he was one of the good guys" and that everything would be taken care of. At the safe house Sposito encountered General Henry Rangel Silva, head of the DISIP. According to Sposito, Rangel Silva also complained that the FARC were "forgetting their place" and explained that the BRV tolerated the FARC as an 8000-strong force to stave off a Colombian-U.S. invasion. ¶4. (S) Sposito said that the following day he followed instructions to call "Xiomara" who ordered him to meet her that evening. The meeting place was at the offices of Freddy Bernal, an ardent Chavista and mayor of the Caracas borough Libertador. From there Xiomara led Sposito inside made a call presumably to the FARC, and according to Sposito, gave the party on the other end a severe dressing down accusing the FARC of bothering a good friend of President Chavez. Since then Sposito has not been bothered FARC shakedown operations. ¶4. (C) Comment: Although post cannot authenticate Sposito's story, it is common knowledge that organized crime, leftist guerrillas and paramilitaries prey on Venezuelan's living in the border area. The difficulty is determining which organization is behind which crime. The Agricultural AttachQ has been approached several times with similar stories that the climate of fear has impacted agricultural production in the border states as landowners cannot remain overnight to supervise operations. End Comment. DUDDY