
Oil tycoon Wilmer Ruperti showed up for a meeting with Venezuela’s intelligence agency last Thursday. A week later, he’s still in custody, one of his lawyers told Semafor.
“We’ve reached out to everybody trying to get proof of life or some support,” Winston & Strawn’s Cari Stinebower said, adding that officials still haven’t conveyed “how he’s being treated or why he’s being detained.”
Ruperti, who arrived at the meeting with a security detail, is a Venezuelan Italian shipping magnate who trades in petroleum coke. His detainment followed interim President Delcy Rodríguez’s decision to elevate the agency’s longtime chief to defense minister.
“The message is that Venezuela is open for business — but detaining businessmen for days on end without any due process or access to counsel is more old regime,” Stinebower said. “This is not law and order and not conducive of a welcoming business environment.”
The State Department and Energy Department did not respond to requests for comment.
latest_posts
- 1
A Russian fighting for Ukraine conned the Kremlin out of $500,000 by faking his own death - 2
Artemis II live updates: NASA's historic moon mission set to make lunar flyby today - 3
ByHeart baby formula from all lots may be contaminated with botulism bacteria, tests show - 4
A Lone Wolf Outsmarted Hunters in the Black Forest and Then Vanished - 5
Steinmeier honours Italian 'guest workers' who rebuilt German economy
Watch SpaceX launch NASA's Pandora exoplanet-studying satellite on Jan. 11
A definitive Manual for Well known Fragrances
15 skywatching events you won't want to miss in 2026
Blue Origin's next space tourism flight will break new ground for people with disabilities
Reality TV star Spencer Pratt, who lost his home in Palisades Fire, is running for mayor of Los Angeles
Longtime United Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno resigns from space company. 'Finished the mission I came to do.'
4 Electric Vehicle Brands: Execution, Unwavering quality, and Development
The most effective method to Explore Moral Situations in Brain research with Your Certification
Protest inspired by 'Gen Z' movement draws few young people in Mexico and many government critics













