Maduro Says Several Army Officers Detained on Suspicion of Plotting Coup

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Several officers of the Venezuelan armed forces have been detained on suspicion of conspiring a coup attempt and plotting to thwart the presidential election while being funded by the Colombian government and the US embassy, President Nicolas Maduro said.

"Having faced charges, they pleaded guilty to having sold themselves to traitors who paid them from Colombia in dollars to make them betray dignity, morals, and loyalty of our armed forces," Maduro was quoted by the Noticias Venezuela news portal as saying during his swearing-in ceremony as president on Thursday.

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According to Maduro, those detained confessed that they had been seeking to disrupt the presidential election and received money from the US embassy.

The president added that the suspects had been financed by both the US Embassy and the Colombian government, who had been allegedly acting in conjunction.

On Sunday, Venezuela held its presidential election, with four candidates running. According to the National Electoral Council, Maduro was re-elected as Venezuelan president for his second term, having secured 68 percent of votes, with slightly over 46 percent voter turnout.

Following the announcement of the election’s results, a number of countries, such as the United States, Argentina, Spain, Germany, and the United Kingdom characterized the vote as either unfair or illegitimate, questioning the transparent and inclusive nature of the electoral process.