The case of Arturo Cubillas is captivating. Here is an individual who was sent to Venezuela in the late 1980s for involvement in criminal activities linked to the terrorist group ETA, thanks to an agreement between Spanish Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez and Venezuelan President Carlos Andrés Perez. His association with the Basque terrorist organization is unquestionable.
After spending some years in Venezuela, Cubillas marries the Venezuelan of Basque origin, Goizeder Odriozola. Once in power, Hugo Chavez appoints Goizeder Odriozola to positions of absolute trust, such as head of the presidential office. At that time, Odriozola is already married to Cubillas. By this point, Venezuela’s intelligence and police agencies are aware of Cubillas’ past and the circumstances under which he arrived in the country. None of this seems to have dissuaded the caudillo from appointing the wife of a known terrorist as his close collaborator. But Chavez goes further, allowing Cubillas to become the head of security at the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands.
Elias Jaua, the current Vice President of Venezuela, previously held the position of Minister of Agriculture, where he had, and continues to have, the close collaboration of Odriozola and Cubillas. In other words, both the president and vice president of Venezuela are familiar with Odriozola and her husband, the ETA member Cubillas. However, despite numerous official requests from Spain, where Cubillas has pending legal issues, Chavez refuses to order his arrest and immediate extradition.
Meanwhile, Cubillas has used three different ID numbers to identify himself to authorities (see here and here) and has encountered legal troubles in Venezuela. The Spanish press has published images of Cubillas, obtained by a supposedly infiltrated Spanish journalist, which bear no relation to the image released by Diario La Verdad of Venezuela.
Given all this, one must wonder: why does Hugo Chavez protect Arturo Cubillas?