In a letter addressed to President Donald Trump and the people of the United States, former military intelligence chief of the chavista regime and member of the Cartel of the Suns, Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios, publicly acknowledged his crimes, outlining the criminal framework of the Venezuelan regime and urged Washington “not to underestimate” the threat posed by Nicolás Maduro to U.S. national security.
Carvajal —a retired general, right-hand man of Hugo Chávez, and former deputy— is imprisoned in the United States after pleading guilty to narcoterrorism conspiracy. From his cell, he asserted that his responsibility now is to “atone for his sins by telling the whole truth.”
A State Transformed into a Narcoterrorist Apparatus
The former intelligence chief describes the Venezuelan regime as a transnational criminal organization, led by Nicolás Maduro, Diosdado Cabello, and power circles operating under the Cartel of the Suns.
According to his testimony, the strategy to flood the United States with drugs “was not a product of corruption or independent narcos,” but rather a deliberate policy designed by Havana and implemented with support from FARC, ELN, Cuban agents, and even Hezbollah.
“The aim was to use drugs as a weapon against the United States… These operations were deliberate political actions coordinated by the regime.”
—Hugo Carvajal
Carvajal claims that Venezuela provided weapons, passports, air and sea routes, judicial protection, and impunity to these organizations to operate freely within Venezuelan territory.
The Train of Aragua: A Tool of the State
One of the most explosive points in the letter details the creation and expansion of the Train of Aragua, which Carvajal describes as a “criminal brigade of the revolution.”
He asserts that:
- Chávez ordered the recruitment of criminal leaders inside and outside of prisons in exchange for impunity.
- Maduro intentionally exported crime to other countries.
- Thousands of gang members were expelled from Venezuela by direct orders from the State.
- The open border policy under the Biden-Harris administration accelerated their infiltration into the U.S.
“Today, they have obedient and armed personnel on U.S. soil… Every crime they commit in their country is an act ordered by the regime.”
Espionage, Infiltration, and Cooperation with Russia, Cuba, and Hezbollah
Carvajal outlines espionage operations executed by:
- Cuban intelligence
- Russian services
- Venezuelan operatives disguised as opponents
- Agents infiltrated in U.S. military bases
He recounts a particularly serious incident:
“Russian intelligence proposed interfering with submarine cables connecting Latin America to the United States to penetrate their government communications.”
He also claims that U.S. diplomats and intelligence agents received illicit payments to favor chavismo, acting as spies for Cuba and Venezuela.
Smartmatic: The Machines, the Software, and Manipulation
Carvajal claims that Smartmatic was born as an electoral tool of chavismo and that he personally positioned a trusted operator within the CNE system.
“The Smartmatic system can be altered; this is a fact.
It was designed to sustain the regime.”
He warns that this electoral technology has been exported beyond Venezuela, including parts of its infrastructure to U.S. territory.
“The United States is at War and Doesn’t Know It”
The former intelligence chief argues that allowing a narcoterrorist regime to operate freely in the Caribbean is akin to conceding strategic ground to hostile actors.
“The regime is at war with you.
It uses drugs, gangs, espionage, and even its own democratic processes as weapons.”
Carvajal explicitly supports Trump’s policy toward Venezuela and warns that the regime possesses extreme contingency plans to ensure its grip on power, regardless of the cost.
A Final Message: Total Cooperation with the U.S.
Carvajal concludes the letter with his full support for President Trump, offering to provide more information on:
- Narcotrafficking routes
- Espionage networks
- Regime collaborators in the U.S.
- Operations of the Cartel of the Suns
- Electoral engineering and Smartmatic manipulation
- Foreign agents operating within U.S. territory
Hugo “El Pollo” Carvajal’s letter marks one of the most direct and structured testimonies provided publicly by a former high-ranking chavista official to the United States.
If confirmed, its content could have a profound impact on:
- U.S. national security operations
- Foreign policy toward Venezuela
- Investigations into transnational organized crime
- The debate over electoral sovereignty in the region
Carvajal not only admits his guilt: he asserts that the regime he served is actively at war with the United States.