CIA director brought paramilitary leader involved in Maduro capture to Cuba meeting, sources say

By

Updated on: May 22, 2026 / 6:04 PM EDT

/ CBS News

Add CBS News on Google

When CIA Director John Ratcliffe visited Havana last week for a rare meeting with senior Cuban officials, he brought along one of the operators involved in the U.S. mission to capture then-Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro earlier this year, multiple people familiar with the matter told CBS News.Venezuela and Cuba were key allies before Maduro's arrest, and the Cuban government has said 32 of its military and police officers were killed in the January operation to extract Maduro. Ratcliffe made a point of introducing the paramilitary leader to the Cubans as the one who killed their people in Venezuela, several sources said. The presence of a paramilitary officer who was involved in capturing a key partner of the Cuban government just months earlier may have been intended to send a signal.The CIA declined to comment.Ratcliffe's visit followed months of pressure on Cuba. The administration has threatened steep tariffs on any countries that export oil to the island nation, leading to severe fuel shortages. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the country needs to make fundamental economic and political reforms, and President Trump has floated a "friendly takeover" of the island, which has vexed U.S. administrations since Cuba's communist movement rose to power in 1959.