Nicolás Maduro's regiment had as ambassador in Tehran a commander, José Rafael Silva Aponte, who participated as a coup leader in 1992 along with one of the crew members of the Venezuelan-Iranian plane Emtrasur, held in Buenos Aires since June 6.
The now diplomat Silva Aponte was appointed commander of the Bolivarian Air Force in 2020. He had a military career since in November 1992 he participated in the second attempted coup against Carlos Andrés Pérez, leader of the late Hugo Chávez Frías, who broke into the country on February 4 of that same year in the first coup against democracy.
The new ambassador to Iran was also Chavez's aide. The officers who were involved in the two military coups of 1992 have enriched themselves in these 23 years of Chavismo. They have held high positions in the direction of public administration, economy, services, finance, telecommunications and transportation, as well as illicit activities such as smuggling, drug trafficking and corruption.
Silva Aponte's links with the crew of the plane seized in Ezeiza come from their common past with the official coup plotters. Between 2017 and 2018 as commander of the El Libertador air base in Palo Negro, Aragua, near Caracas, he attended the headquarters of Emtrasur, founded in 2020 and a cargo subsidiary of the Venezuelan air force Conviasa.
The Emtrasur aircraft, Boeing 747-300 with registration YV3531, landed at the Ezeiza Bonaerense International Airport, had an unusual crew of 19 people (5 Iranians and 14 Venezuelans).
In the list of the 14 Venezuelan crew members, the name of Cornelio Trujillo Candor, 66, stands out, who was pointed out by Venezuelan media as one of the pilots who on November 27, 1992 participated in an attempted coup d'état to free Hugo Chavez, who was in prison. Hence his link with his comrade-in-arms, the new ambassador Silva Aponte.
The Trujillo pilot is a graduate of the Venezuelan Military Academy and throughout his career he achieved some milestones such as promotion to the position of Aviation Lieutenant Colonel. He is also among the founders of Conviasa, the Venezuelan flag airline where other of his crewmates work with whom they have been staying at the Hotel Plaza Canning for a few days.
In addition, according to the portal monitoreamos.com, on November 8, 2006, he was appointed general manager of Aeronautical Safety of the National Institute of Civil Aeronautics (INAC).
“He is not a popularly known character in Venezuela, he is not super well-known. If it is for some military experts or older journalists who have covered the coup, ”a Venezuelan journalist who preferred to protect his identity told PROFILE.
The Venezuelan airlines Emtrasur and Conviasa, as well as the Iranian airline Mahan Air, which previously owned the cargo aircraft involved in the case, are sanctioned by the OFAC (Office of Federal Assets) of the United States Department of the Treasury for their alleged participation in terrorist operations around the world through logistical support.
