Marco Rubio, mastermind of Maduro's capture, was once target of potential assassination plot by Venezuela

A Department of Homeland Security memo reveals that Diosdado Cabello Rondon, a top Venezuelan politician, believed to control the country’s security forces, discussed a plot to assassinate US Senator Marco Rubio last month.

The memo suggests Cabello Rondon may have considered using Mexican nationals for the operation, though the threats were not fully substantiated. In response to the potential danger, Capitol Police and Miami-Dade law enforcement have increased Rubio’s security.

The Miami Herald first reported the details of the memo on Sunday.

Despite the potential threat, Rubio has continued to speak out against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, advocating for tougher sanctions and even engaging in a brief Twitter exchange with Cabello Rondon last week. In the exchange, Rubio accused Cabello Rondon of involvement in drug trafficking, a claim the Venezuelan official denied.

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“In some unspecified manner, CABELLO RONDON’s problems involved U.S. Senator Marco Rubio,” the memo, obtained by Politico, stated. The outlet did not disclose details that could jeopardise Rubio’s safety, his family, or confidential law enforcement sources.

The memo also indicated that Cabello Rondon may have discussed fundraising for the assassination plot or addressing the “problems” facing Venezuela’s ruling regime.

“CABELLO RONDON did indeed issue an order … to have Senator Rubio assassinated,” the memo said. “Additionally, CABELLO RONDON was communicating with unspecified Mexican nationals in furtherance of the matter.”

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As Venezuela’s political crisis deepened following a controversial election that allowed Maduro to retain power, the US labelled him a dictator and imposed individual sanctions on him and other regime members. After a failed military uprising against Maduro, Rubio took to Twitter on August 6 to criticise Cabello Rondon, stating the incident “shows who’s in charge of security forces in #Venezuela.”

In response, Cabello Rondon accused Rubio of imperialism and of being “the defender of the terrorists who attacked Fort Paramacay,” a Venezuelan military base recently targeted by dissident security forces. He also mocked Rubio with the nickname “Narco Rubio”—an ironic jab considering Cabello Rondon himself has long been suspected by the US of drug trafficking, though he has denied these accusations.

“Diosdado ‘Pablo Escobar’ Cabello is unusually nervous and frantic this morning,” Rubio retorted in his reply.