Hugo Carvajal Barrios, the former head of Venezuela’s military intelligence, is set to face trial in the United States this June. His defense team now argues that their client cannot be prosecuted for his alleged role in a state-run drug smuggling operation, citing “sovereign immunity” due to his past status as a foreign government representative.
According to a November court transcript recently made public, attorney Robert Feitel intends to file a motion asserting that Carvajal’s 2023 extradition to the U.S. was unlawful. Additionally, they plan to invoke sovereign immunity, claiming his alleged crimes occurred while he served as director of military intelligence under former President Hugo Chavez and current leader Nicolas Maduro.
Federal prosecutors accuse Carvajal, often referred to as “El Pollo,” of being a key figure in the Cartel de los Soles—a group of high-ranking Venezuelan military officials allegedly involved in trafficking cocaine. The indictment specifically mentions a 2006 attempt to smuggle 5.6 tons of cocaine into the U.S. aboard a private jet, which was intercepted in Mexico.
Carvajal’s legal odyssey began in 2014 when he was arrested in Aruba but later released due to diplomatic immunity. After being expelled from the Venezuelan military in 2019 for supporting opposition leader Juan Guaido, he fled to Spain under a false identity. There, he escaped house arrest and remained on the run for over a year before being recaptured in Madrid in 2021.
His trial is scheduled to start on June 30, with the court having set earlier deadlines for the filing of motions. The outcome of those legal challenges remains undisclosed.