View source for Operation Gideon (2020)

← Operation Gideon (2020)

You do not have permission to edit this page, for the following reasons:

This IP address has been blocked from editing Wikipedia.
This does not affect your ability to read Wikipedia pages.
Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong. Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.

The IP address or range 206.189.32.0/20 has been blocked by ‪ST47‬ for the following reason(s):

The IP address that you are currently using has been blocked because it is believed to be a web host provider. To prevent abuse, web hosts may be blocked from editing Wikipedia.
You will not be able to edit Wikipedia using a web host provider because it hides your IP address, much like a proxy or VPN.
We recommend that you attempt to use another connection to edit. For example, if you use a proxy or VPN to connect to the internet, turn it off when editing Wikipedia. If you edit using a mobile connection, try using a Wi-Fi connection, and vice versa. If you are using a corporate internet connection, switch to a different Wi-Fi network. If you have a Wikipedia account, please log in.
If you do not have any other way to edit Wikipedia, you will need to request an IP block exemption.

How to appeal if you are confident that your connection does not use a web host's IP address:
If you are confident that you are not using a web host, you may appeal this block by adding the following text on your talk page: {{unblock|reason=Caught by a web host block but this host or IP is not a web host. My IP address is _______. Place any further information here. ~~~~}}. You must fill in the blank with your IP address for this block to be investigated. Your IP address can be determined here. Alternatively, if you wish to keep your IP address private you can use the unblock ticket request system. There are several reasons you might be editing using the IP address of a web host (such as if you are using VPN software or a business network); please use this method of appeal only if you think your IP address is in fact not a web host.

Administrators: The IP block exemption user right should only be applied to allow users to edit using web host in exceptional circumstances, and they should usually be directed to the functionaries team via email. If you intend to give the IPBE user right, a CheckUser needs to take a look at the account. This can be requested most easily at SPI Quick Checkuser Requests. Unblocking an IP or IP range with this template is highly discouraged without at least contacting the blocking administrator.

This block will expire on 07:33, 6 August 2027. Your current IP address is 206.189.44.186.

Even when blocked, you will usually still be able to edit your user talk page, as well as email administrators and other editors.

For information on how to proceed, please read the FAQ for blocked users and the guideline on block appeals. The guide to appealing blocks may also be helpful.

Other useful links: Blocking policy · Help:I have been blocked
This IP address has been blocked from editing Wikipedia.
This does not affect your ability to read Wikipedia pages.
Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong. Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.

The IP address or range 206.189.0.0/16 has been blocked by ‪ST47‬ for the following reason(s):

The IP address that you are currently using has been blocked because it is believed to be a web host provider. To prevent abuse, web hosts may be blocked from editing Wikipedia.
You will not be able to edit Wikipedia using a web host provider because it hides your IP address, much like a proxy or VPN.
We recommend that you attempt to use another connection to edit. For example, if you use a proxy or VPN to connect to the internet, turn it off when editing Wikipedia. If you edit using a mobile connection, try using a Wi-Fi connection, and vice versa. If you are using a corporate internet connection, switch to a different Wi-Fi network. If you have a Wikipedia account, please log in.
If you do not have any other way to edit Wikipedia, you will need to request an IP block exemption.

How to appeal if you are confident that your connection does not use a web host's IP address:
If you are confident that you are not using a web host, you may appeal this block by adding the following text on your talk page: {{unblock|reason=Caught by a web host block but this host or IP is not a web host. My IP address is _______. Place any further information here. ~~~~}}. You must fill in the blank with your IP address for this block to be investigated. Your IP address can be determined here. Alternatively, if you wish to keep your IP address private you can use the unblock ticket request system. There are several reasons you might be editing using the IP address of a web host (such as if you are using VPN software or a business network); please use this method of appeal only if you think your IP address is in fact not a web host.

Administrators: The IP block exemption user right should only be applied to allow users to edit using web host in exceptional circumstances, and they should usually be directed to the functionaries team via email. If you intend to give the IPBE user right, a CheckUser needs to take a look at the account. This can be requested most easily at SPI Quick Checkuser Requests. Unblocking an IP or IP range with this template is highly discouraged without at least contacting the blocking administrator.

This block will expire on 07:37, 6 August 2027. Your current IP address is 206.189.44.186.

Even when blocked, you will usually still be able to edit your user talk page, as well as email administrators and other editors.

For information on how to proceed, please read the FAQ for blocked users and the guideline on block appeals. The guide to appealing blocks may also be helpful.

Other useful links: Blocking policy · Help:I have been blocked
This IP address range has been globally blocked.
This does not affect your ability to read Wikipedia pages.
Most people who see this message have done nothing wrong. Some kinds of blocks restrict editing from specific service providers or telecom companies in response to recent abuse or vandalism, and can sometimes affect other users who are unrelated to that abuse. Review the information below for assistance if you do not believe that you have done anything wrong.

This block affects editing on all Wikimedia wikis.
The IP address or range 206.189.32.0/20 has been globally blocked by ‪EPIC‬ for the following reason(s):

Open proxy/Webhost: See the help page if you are affected

This block will expire on 08:48, 2 July 2025. Your current IP address is 206.189.44.186.

Even while globally blocked, you will usually still be able to edit pages on Meta-Wiki.

If you believe you were blocked by mistake, you can find additional information and instructions in the No open proxies global policy. Otherwise, to discuss the block please post a request for review on Meta-Wiki. You could also send an email to the stewards VRT queue at stewards@wikimedia.org including all above details.

Other useful links: Global blocks · Help:I have been blocked

You can view and copy the source of this page:

{{Short description|Conflict in Venezuela}}
{{About|the 2020 Venezuela operation||El Junquito raid|and|Operation Gideon}}
:''This article uses [[Spanish naming customs]]: the paternal [[surname]] is first, and the maternal surname is second.''

{{Use American English|date=April 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Operation Gideon
| partof            = the [[crisis in Venezuela]] and the [[Venezuelan presidential crisis]]
| image             = {{Photomontage
| photo1a = Operación Gedeón 2020 - Capture.png
| photo1b = Operación Gedeón 2020 - Maduro passports.png
| photo2a = Operación Gedeón 2020 - SEBIN capture.png
| position = center
| size = 300
| color = #F5F5F5
| border = 2
| color_border = black
| spacing = 1
| foot_montage = 
}}
| caption           = '''Top to bottom, left to right:'''<br />Venezuelan authorities intercepting a boat; [[Nicolás Maduro]] holding the [[United States passport|US passports]] of captured former [[Green Berets]]; [[SEBIN]] agents displaying captured dissidents
| date              = 3–4 May 2020
| place             = [[Venezuela]]
* [[Macuto, Vargas|Macuto]], [[Vargas (state)|Vargas]]
* [[Chuao]], [[Aragua]]
| action            = Attempt to remove [[Nicolás Maduro]] and other high-level figures from power
| status            = 
| result            = Plot infiltrated and foiled by Maduro administration
*Maduro administration begins ''Bolivarian Shield'' military response
*Arrest warrants issued by the Maduro administration, including for Jordan Goudreau, [[J. J. Rendón]] and [[Sergio Vergara (politician)|Sergio Vergara]], on 8 May<ref name="infobae-regime-charged">{{cite news |title=El régimen de Nicolás Maduro imputó 'por terrorismo y conspiración' a dos estadounidenses y emitió otras 25 órdenes de captura por las incursiones en Venezuela |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/05/08/el-regimen-de-maduro-imputo-por-terrorismo-y-conspiracion-a-dos-estadounidenses-y-emitio-otras-25-ordenes-de-captura-por-las-incursiones-en-venezuela/|language=es|trans-title=Maduro regime charged two Americans with 'terrorism and conspiracy' and issued 25 more arrest warrants for the incursions in Venezuela |access-date=9 May 2020 |agency=[[Infobae]] |date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="HRW-under-attack">{{Cite web|title=Venezuelan Human Rights Group Under Attack|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/05/08/venezuelan-human-rights-group-under-attack|date=8 May 2020|website=Human Rights Watch|language=en|access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref>
* Jordan Goudreau investigated by US federal authorities<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation">{{Cite web|title=Sources: US investigating ex-Green Beret for Venezuela raid|url=https://apnews.com/038e966350a9d7e8ec7a38341f0efeac|last1=Goodman|first1=Joshua|last2=Smith|first2=Scott|date=6 May 2020|publisher=Associated Press |location=Caracas, Washington, New York|access-date=11 May 2020|last3=Lee|first3=Matthew|last4=Herschaft|first4=Randy}}</ref>
| combatant1        = Venezuela military and intelligence
* [[National Bolivarian Armed Forces of Venezuela]]
* [[Bolivarian Intelligence Service]]
| combatant2        = [[Venezuelan crisis defection#Defectors|Venezuelan dissidents]]
* Active Coalition of the Venezuelan International Reserve (CARIVE)
American contractors
*[[Silvercorp USA]]
| commander2        = '''[[Jordan Goudreau ]]'''
* [[Clíver Alcalá Cordones|Clíver Antonio Alcalá Cordones]]
* Javier Enrique Nieto Quintero <!-- see full name with doble apellido at https://www.amazon.com/Ramo-Verde-Reflexi%C3%B3n-represi%C3%B3n-esperanza/dp/1983319678 -->
* Roberto Levid Colina Ibarra {{KIA}}
* Antonio Sequea Torres{{POW}}
| strength1         = Unknown
| strength2         = 300–800 {{small|(planned)<ref name="APgreen">{{cite news | last1 = Goodman | first1 = Joshua | title=Ex-Green Beret led failed attempt to oust Venezuela's Maduro |url=https://apnews.com/79346b4e428676424c0e5669c80fc310 |access-date=5 May 2020 |work=[[Associated Press]] |date=1 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="wapomiamicondo" />}}<br/>~60 {{small|(from sea)<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella">{{Cite web|title=The Invasion of Venezuela, Brought To You By Silvercorp USA|url=https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2020/05/05/the-invasion-of-venezuela-brought-to-you-by-silvercorp-usa/|date=5 May 2020|website=[[Bellingcat]]|first=Giancarlo|last=Fiorella|language=en-GB|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="BBCMundo">{{Cite news |date=7 May 2020|title=Una supuesta confesión televisada y otros detalles de la "fallida incursión armada" en Venezuela por la que se detuvo a dos estadounidenses|trans-title=A supposed televised confession and other details regarding the "failed armed incursion" in Venezuela, over which two Americans were detained|language=es|work=BBC News Mundo|url=https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-52546757|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref>}}
| casualties1       = None
| casualties2       = * 6 killed<ref name="ajwhatweknow">{{Cite web |date=6 May 2020 |title=Venezuela 'failed coup plot': What we know so far |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/5/6/venezuela-failed-coup-plot-what-we-know-so-far |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201226004757/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/5/6/venezuela-failed-coup-plot-what-we-know-so-far |archive-date=26 December 2020 |website=Al Jazeera}}</ref><ref name="PadrinoTweet">{{Cite news|date=6 May 2020|last1=Mozo Zambrano|first1=Reynaldo|title=Padrino López anuncia captura de tres "mercenarios" en la carretera El Junquito-Carayaca|trans-title=Padrino Lopez announces the capture of three "mercenaries" on the El Junquito-Carayaca Highway|language=es-es|work=Efecto Cocuyo|url=https://efectococuyo.com/politica/padrino-lopez-anuncia-captura-de-tres-mercenarios-en-la-carretera-el-junquito-carayaca/|access-date=6 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How">{{Cite news|last1=Faiola|first1=Anthony|last2=Boburg|first2=Shawn|last3=Herrero|first3=Ana Vanessa|date=10 May 2020|title=Venezuela raid: How an ex-Green Beret and a defecting general planned to capture Maduro|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/venezuela-raid-jordan-goudreau-cliver-alcala-maduro/2020/05/10/767c3386-9194-11ea-9322-a29e75effc93_story.html}} Also at {{ProQuest|2400242453}}</ref>
* 91 captured {{small|(including 2 American mercenaries)<ref name=DER>{{Cite web |date=15 May 2020 |title=Venezuela verkündet Festnahme von 39 "Deserteuren" |url=https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000117503656/venezolanische-regierung-fast-40-deserteure-festgenommen |access-date=2023-10-20 |website=[[Der Standard]] |language=de-AT}}</ref>}}
| commander1        = '''[[Nicolás Maduro]]'''
* [[Diosdado Cabello]]
* [[Vladimir Padrino López]]
* [[Néstor Reverol]]
}}

'''Operation Gideon''' ({{langx|es|Operación Gedeón|italic=no}}) was an unsuccessful attempt by the Active Coalition of the Venezuelan International Reserve, [[Venezuela]]n [[dissident]]s, and a [[private military company|private security firm]], [[Jordan Goudreau]]'s Silvercorp USA, to infiltrate Venezuela by sea and remove [[Nicolás Maduro]] from power. The plan executed from 3 to 4 May 2020 was for expatriate Venezuelan former military personnel living in [[Colombia]] to enter the country by boat at [[Macuto, Vargas|Macuto]], take control of an airfield, capture Maduro and other high-level figures in his administration, and expel them from the country.

A landing attempt to initiate the operation went forward despite its impracticality. Two boats were launched from eastern Colombia toward the [[Caribbean Sea|Caribbean]] coast of Venezuela north of Caracas, carrying approximately 60 Venezuelan dissidents and two American former [[Green Berets]] employed as [[mercenaries]] by Silvercorp. Both boats were intercepted before they reached land. At least six Venezuelan dissidents in the first boat were killed, and all but four of the invaders were [[Prisoner of war|captured]] during the attempted landing or subsequent search operations, including the two Americans from the second boat, whose [[interrogation]]s were broadcast on [[State media|state television]].

Venezuelan [[Military intelligence|intelligence]] agencies and the [[Associated Press]] (AP) had prior knowledge of the operation. Commentators and observers described the operation as amateurish, underfunded, poorly organized, impossible, and a [[suicide mission]], and divergent narratives led to questions about how the plot unfolded. Sources criticized the poor planning and execution, alternating between characterizing the operation as an attempted invasion, infiltration, raid, ambush, assassination or coup. Maduro and his representatives described the attacking force as [[terrorists]] who planned to kill him in a plot coordinated by Colombia and the United States. Guaidó and some supporters described the event as a [[false flag]] orchestrated by Maduro, and Goudreau described the team as [[freedom fighter]]s seeking to restore democracy.

== Background ==
{{main|Venezuelan presidential crisis}}
{{Crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela short}}

[[Nicolás Maduro]] first took office as [[president of Venezuela]] in 2013 as the hand-picked successor of [[Hugo Chávez]] after Chávez's death from cancer.{{sfn|Corrales|2020|p=39}} Javier Corrales wrote in a ''[[Journal of Democracy]]'' article that the "questionable electoral integrity" and the "slim margin" by which Maduro won the [[2013 Venezuelan presidential election]] brought resistance to his mandate from "opposition parties, the media, civil society, elements of the military, and international actors".{{sfn|Corrales|2020|p=39}} Corrales states that Maduro "presided over one of the most devastating national economic crises seen anywhere in modern times."{{sfn|Corrales|2020|p=39}} Beginning with the [[2014 Venezuelan protests]], [[Popular Will]] leader [[Leopoldo López]] had sought to expel Maduro, calling for "direct action to remove" him, according to an article published by ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''.<ref name="WSJ26Jun" />

According to Rafael Villa – writing in ''Defence Studies'' in 2022 – "Maduro's leadership [was] not consensual" and among the changes he had made to overcome his "political fragility" was promoting an excessive number of officers within the military, and the election of a [[2017 Constituent National Assembly of Venezuela|2017 Constituent National Assembly]] to replace the opposition-led [[National Assembly (Venezuela)|National Assembly]], which had been elected in 2015.{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}}{{sfn|Corrales|2020|pp=41–42}} Victor Mijares writes, in the book ''Latin American Politics and Development'', that increased authoritarianism and control of the military in an environment of extreme poverty and inflation during a period marked by protests and repression, brought about a "legitimacy crisis coming from dubious elections" with the "combination of these tactics of political control and illegal rule" leading to the [[Venezuelan presidential crisis|presidential crisis]] between Maduro and Popular Will politician [[Juan Guaidó]].{{sfn|Mijares|2022|p= 231}} According to unnamed sources cited by ''The Wall Street Journal'' article, the 2018 election – "widely seen as fraudulent" – convinced López that negotiations with Maduro were not an option.<ref name="WSJ26Jun" /><ref name="BBCMundo-Guaido-leadership">{{Cite news |last=Olmo |first=Guillermo D. |date=19 May 2020 |title=Cómo afecta al liderazgo de Juan Guaidó en la oposición venezolana el fracaso de la Operación Gedeón contra Nicolás Maduro |trans-title=How the failure of Operation Gedeón against Nicolás Maduro affects Juan Guaidó's leadership in the Venezuelan opposition |url=https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-52687264 |access-date=21 May 2020 |work=[[BBC Mundo]] |language=es}}</ref>

A power struggle for the presidency of Venezuela began in January 2019 following the [[2018 Venezuelan presidential election|2018 presidential election]]; ''The Wall Street Journal'' stated that the 2018 election was "widely seen as fraudulent",<ref name="WSJ26Jun"/> and according to ''[[The Washington Post]]'', incumbent [[Nicolás Maduro]] was "accused of stealing the 2018 elections" and leading a repressive administration.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" />{{sfn|Corrales|2020|pp=41–42}} In January 2019, Guaidó was named president of the National Assembly – the "nation's last democratic institution" according to ''The Washington Post''.<ref name=WAPO-Faiola-How/> He was later [[Responses to the Venezuelan presidential crisis|recognized by more than 50 countries]], including the United States, as [[Statute Governing the Transition to Democracy|interim president of Venezuela]].<ref name=APgreen/> James DeFronzo wrote in the 2021 book, ''Revolutions and Revolutionary Movements'', that: "Critics questioned whether there was really constitutional justification for Guaidó to become interim president in place of Maduro."{{sfn|DeFronzo|2021|p=455}} The US administration of [[Donald Trump]] pressured for the exit of Maduro,{{sfn|DeFronzo|2021|p=456}} charged him with narcoterrorism, and put a US$15&nbsp;million reward for information leading to his capture and arrest.<ref name="Reuters6May">{{Cite news |last1=Ellsworth |first1=Brian |last2=Berwick |first2=Angus |date=6 May 2020 |title=Detained American claims he plotted Maduro's capture in Venezuela TV statement |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/venezuela-security-videos/detained-american-claims-he-plotted-maduros-capture-in-venezuela-tv-statement-idINKBN22J088 |access-date=11 September 2023}}</ref><ref name=guardianTrumpdenies/> Throughout 2019, the Maduro administration maintained control of Venezuela's military agencies and key governmental institutions.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} Maduro enjoyed the support of the higher ranks of the military, but less so among the middle and lower ranks.{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}}{{sfn|Corrales|2020|pp=41–42}}

Establishing a government in Venezuela required three crucial elements: according to Villa, "the people, the international community, and the armed forces."{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}} Following the failed [[2019 Venezuelan uprising attempt]] led by Guaidó against Maduro on 30 April, Guaidó's movement lost momentum.{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}}{{sfn|DeFronzo|2021|p=456}} William Neuman wrote in the 2022 book ''[[Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse: Inside the Collapse of Venezuela]]'' that, with waning support and other options not materializing, Guaidó and López sought "another way out of Venezuela's impasse".{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} A ''Wall Street Journal'' aticle stated that unnamed sources said López and his closest aides began seeking a security firm and contemplated hiring mercenaries without the knowledge of other opposition parties. Guaidó and López have said that the meetings rarely went beyond informal conversations.<ref name= WSJ26Jun/>

After the unsuccessful April 2019 uprising, some [[Venezuelan crisis defection#Other military|former military and police defectors who sided with Guaidó took refuge in Colombia]];<ref name=APgreen/> they considered their aim was to "liberate their homeland from the socialist government of [an] autocratic" president, according to ''The Washington Post''.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How"/> Businesses began to approach the Guaidó administration, seeking to profit from contracts they expected to become available as Guaidó replaced Maduro,<ref name=WAPO-Faiola-How/> and proposals of an armed operation to support Guaidó began to be discussed.<ref name=APgreen/>

==Planning==
Operation Gideon was primarily planned by [[Clíver Alcalá Cordones]] and [[Jordan Goudreau]].<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /><ref name="globemail12">{{cite news|last1=Freeze|first1=Colin|last2=Dickson|first2=Janice|date=5 May 2020|title=A Canadian-American military man, a failed Venezuela coup and a Twitter video|work=[[The Globe and Mail]]|location=[[Toronto]] and [[Ottawa]]|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-a-canadian-american-military-man-a-failed-venezuela-coup-and-a/|access-date=6 May 2020}}</ref>

Alcalá was a [[Major General]] in the [[Venezuelan Army]] with close ties to the [[Hugo Chávez]] government until he defected under Maduro<ref name= wapomiamicondo/> to Colombia in 2013 and began gathering [[Venezuelan crisis defection|other defectors]], stationing them in the [[La Guajira Peninsula]].<ref name=APgreen/> In 2011, he was charged by the US with providing the Colombian FARC with arms, and was indicted for narcoterrorism in March 2020 as a member of the [[Cartel of the Suns]].<ref name= APgreen/><ref name=WAPO-Faiola-How/>

Goudreau served in the [[Canadian Armed Forces]]<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /><ref name="globemail12" /> and later moved to [[Washington, D.C.]] and enlisted in the [[United States Army]], eventually reaching the rank of [[Sergeant First Class]] in the [[10th Special Forces Group (United States)|10th Special Forces Group]].<ref name="globemail12" /> He became a [[naturalized]] US citizen and retired at the age of 40 due to injuries.<ref name="globemail12" /> In 2018, he founded Silvercorp USA, with the initial idea being "to embed counter-terror agents in schools disguised as teachers".<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name= Mind-blowing/>

Goudreau is reported to have provided security at a political rally for [[Donald Trump]] in [[Charlotte, North Carolina]] in October 2018 based on material on the Silvercorp website and Instagram account.<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /><ref>{{Cite news|last=Ensor|first=Josie|date=6 May 2020|title=Venezuela 'coup plot leader' provided security at Trump rallies – reports|language=en-GB|work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/06/venezuela-coup-plot-leader-provided-security-trump-rallies/|access-date=7 May 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200507120624/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/06/venezuela-coup-plot-leader-provided-security-trump-rallies/ |archive-date= 7 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="NYMag-dumbest-aspects">{{Cite magazine|title=The Dumbest Aspects of the Apparent Coup Attempt in Venezuela|date=5 May 2020|magazine=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] magazine|url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/dumbest-aspects-of-the-mercenary-coup-plot-in-venezuela.html|last=Stieb|first=Matt|access-date=17 May 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200508003943/https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/dumbest-aspects-of-the-mercenary-coup-plot-in-venezuela.html |archive-date= 8 May 2020}}</ref> In February 2019, Silvercorp provided security services at the [[Venezuela Aid Live]] concert in Colombia, and Goudreau turned his attention to Venezuela.<ref>{{Cite news|date=5 May 2020|title=Venezuela detains two US citizens over speedboat incursion|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-52543033|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://elpais.com/internacional/2020-05-16/mitos-egos-y-torpeza-anatomia-de-un-complot-disparatado-en-venezuela.html|title=Mitos, egos y torpeza: anatomía de un complot disparatado en Venezuela|date=16 May 2020|website=[[El País]]|last1=Lafuente|first1=Javier|last2=Manetto|first2=Francesco|language=es|trans-title=Myths, egos, and ineptitude: anatomy of ludicrous plot in Venezuela}}</ref> According to Goudreau's friend and business partner, Drew White, he saw a business opportunity in the Trump administration's intensified efforts to remove Maduro from power.<ref name="APgreen" /> White said he distanced himself from Silvercorp and Goudreau when Goudreau began discussing launching a military operation in Venezuela.<ref name="globemail12" />

Journalist {{ill|Sebastiana Barráez|es}}, who specializes in Venezuelan military reporting,<ref name= Barraez2020/> writes that what came to be known as Operation Gideon was three different plans at different times: one was the preparation in the Colombian camps of exiled Venezuelan military led by Alcalá until he was extradited to the U.S. in March 2020; another was the period after that when Antonio Sequea took over the camps until he led the men on what she calls a "suicide mission" to an ambush at [[Macuto, Vargas|Macuto]]; and yet another phase was what related to SilverCorp and [[Diosdado Cabello]]<ref name= Emboscada/> who had infiltrated the camps and had advance knowledge of the plans.<ref name=LasPruebas/>{{efn| Colombian intelligence sources who later arrested other suspects also stated that Maduro double-agents had infiltrated the camps.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.elespectador.com/judicial/detenidos-por-la-operacion-gedeon-contra-nicolas-maduro-serian-agentes-dobles-article/ |title= Detenidos por la operación Gedeón contra Nicolás Maduro serían agentes dobles |language=es |trans-title= Those arrested for the Gedeón operation against Nicolás Maduro would be double agents |work= [[El Espectador]] |date= 3 September 2020|access-date= 3 November 2023}}</ref>}}

=== Initial promotion: March–May 2019 ===
{{further|Venezuelan crisis defection}}
Alcalá openly discussed his plans to overthrow the Maduro government with a 1,000 men strong force with ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'', saying "If you don't do this now, the republic is lost."<ref name="Forero2020" /> ''The Wall Street Journal'' reported that Alcalá planned to use dissident soldiers from the Venezuelan army and national guard, hoping to involve officers in the operation prior to their purging by the Maduro government.<ref name="Forero2020" />

Through connections within the private security community, Goudreau was acquainted with [[Keith Schiller]], the longtime director of security for Donald Trump.<ref name="APgreen" /> Schiller brought Goudreau to a March 2019 fundraising event focused on security in Venezuela and future investments in the nation following a potential end of the Maduro government, which took place at the [[University Club of Washington, DC]].<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /> {{ill|Lester Toledo|es}}, the director of humanitarian aid for Guaidó's government, also attended.<ref name="APgreen" />

Weeks later, according to an AP article, Toledo introduced Goudreau to Alcalá at [[JW Marriott Hotels|JW Marriott Bogotá]] during a conference where groups of Venezuelan exiles, some of whom were involved in Guaidó's failed uprising, gathered.<ref name="APgreen" /> The ''Wall Street Journal'' reported that Alcalá and Goudreau had been introduced by "associates" of [[Leopoldo López]] and that opposition officials were convinced about the plot's feasibility.<ref name="WSJ26Jun" /> During the two-day meeting with Toledo and Goudreau, Alcalá disclosed that he had recruited some 300 men stationed at training camps on the [[Guajira Peninsula]] near [[Riohacha]], Colombia, ready to carry out "a 'mad plan' to push across the western border, take the oil center of [[Maracaibo]] and force their way to Caracas, the capital".<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /><ref name="APgreen" /> Goudreau indicated that instead of 300 as Alcalá promised, there were only 60 trainees.<ref name="AP-2US" /> Goudreau proposed an alternative approach, suggesting that his company, Silvercorp, could train and equip the soldiers for a rapid strike at a cost of US$1.5 million.<ref name="APgreen" /> Goudreau said he had contacts with Trump administration officials, though reportedly did not provide support for his statements.<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /> Men familiar with the missions said Goudreau "had convinced the men that they were training for a U.S.-backed incursion into Venezuela", according to ''The Washington Post''.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /> Following the meeting at JW Marriott, Toledo and some Guaidó officials indicated that they ended contact with Goudreau because they believed the operation was a suicide mission and they did not trust Alcalá.<ref name="APgreen" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-10 |title=Operación suicida en Venezuela |url=https://www.semana.com/nacion/articulo/operacion-suicida-la-historia-del-plan-para-derrocar-a-maduro/670234/ |access-date=2023-10-20 |website=[[Semana]] |language=es}}</ref>

In May 2019, Schiller and Goudreau met with Guaidó administration officials in [[Miami, Florida]], where Goudreau promoted the idea of providing security for Guaidó officials.<ref name="APgreen" /> Schiller distanced himself from Goudreau following the meeting, believing that Goudreau was incapable of providing the services he was offering.<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name="wapomiamicondo" />

Goudreau's October 2020 lawsuit stated that a $500-million proposal had been submitted by [[Blackwater (company)|Blackwater]] founder [[Erik Prince]] that involved 5,000 troops and mercenaries.<ref name="TheMiamiHerald2020"/><ref name="Reuters2019">{{Cite news |date=30 April 2019 |title=Exclusive – Blackwater founder's latest sales pitch: mercenaries for Venezuela |language=en |work=[[Reuters]] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-erikprince-exclusi-idUSKCN1S608F |access-date=14 June 2023}}</ref> Guaidó and his representatives, as well as Prince and his representatives, denied such reports.<ref name="Makuch2021">{{Cite web |last=Makuch |first=Ben |date=26 October 2021 |title=MAGA, the CIA, and Silvercorp: The Bizarre Backstory of the World's Most Disastrous Coup |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/pkpex7/maga-the-cia-and-silvercorp-the-bizarre-backstory-of-the-worlds-most-disastrous-coup |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026191544/https://www.vice.com/en/article/pkpex7/maga-the-cia-and-silvercorp-the-bizarre-backstory-of-the-worlds-most-disastrous-coup |archive-date=26 October 2021 |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[Vice (magazine)|Vice]] magazine |language=en}}</ref><ref name="TheMiamiHerald2020">{{Cite news |first1= Antonio M. |last1= Delgado |first2= Kevin G. |last2= Hall |first3= Shirsho |last3= Dasgupta |first4= Ben |last4= Wieder |date=30 October 2020 |title=Venezuela coup plotters met at Trump Doral. Central figure says U.S. officials knew of plan |work=[[Miami Herald]] |url= https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/article246819562.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201030210143/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/article246819562.html |archive-date= 30 October 2020 |access-date= 10 September 2023}}</ref>

=== Colombia Silvercorp established: June 2019 ===
A Colombian branch of Silvercorp was opened in mid-2019 by Goudreau and Yacsy Alezandra Álvarez Mirabal, who acted as a translator for Alcalá and Goudreau.<ref name="OliverCraviotto2021">{{Cite news |last=Oliver Craviotto |first=Marta |date=11 January 2021 |title=Yacsy Álvarez in her own words |work=[[Miami Herald]] |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article247794845.html}}</ref><ref name="AssociatedPress20210">{{Cite web |date=20 April 2021 |title=3 Venezuelans plead guilty for aiding anti-Maduro plot |url=https://apnews.com/article/army-miami-latin-america-colombia-venezuela-89ad386cf7fbdb0873ae5f767ac26b50 |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[Associated Press]] |language=en}}</ref> Álvarez was an assistant of [[Franklin Durán]], a Venezuelan businessman who had business ties with the Venezuelan government for about two decades until his company was expropriated by the government; one of his businesses had a history of importing military equipment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 February 2021 |title="Clíver Alcalá siempre estuvo en contacto con la DNI": Yacsy Álvarez sobre la Operación Gedeón |url=https://www.elespectador.com/judicial/cliver-alcala-siempre-estuvo-en-contacto-con-la-dni-yacsy-alvarez-sobre-la-operacion-gedeon-article/ |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[El Espectador]] |language=es}}</ref><ref name="AssociatedPress20211">{{Cite web |date=20 April 2021 |title=Failed Maduro coup leader flew on pro-govt magnate's plane |url=https://apnews.com/article/miami-us-news-ap-top-news-venezuela-international-news-d0686b369c2755e3b7b0f4cd0f7bc465 |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=Associated Press |language=en |quote=Durán over two decades has had numerous business ties with the socialist government of Venezuela, making him an odd choice to help a band of would-be-mercenaries overthrow Maduro, the handpicked successor of the late Chávez}}</ref> Durán and his brothers were friends with Alcalá prior to the event; the AP described Durán as "close to the government of the late Hugo Chávez".<ref name="AssociatedPress20211" />

In June 2019, Alcalá met with the [[National Intelligence Directorate (Colombia)|National Intelligence Directorate]] of Colombia asking for support, saying Goudreau was a former [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] agent.<ref name="AssociatedPress2022" /><ref name="APgreen" /> CIA contacts in Bogotá reportedly denied that Goudreau had ever been a CIA agent.<ref name="APgreen" /> According to Álvarez, former [[president of Colombia]] [[Álvaro Uribe]] and then president [[Iván Duque]] expressed support for Goudreau's efforts, offering them a training camp, an airstrip and safe passage for individuals in exchange for combatting militants of the [[National Liberation Army (Colombia)|National Liberation Army]] in the area.<ref name="OliverCraviotto2021" /> US officials learned of the "hundreds of Venezuelan soldiers who had defected and were living precariously in Colombia" and discussed a plan to reorganize them to assist victims of the [[Venezuelan refugee crisis]], thus diverting them from illegal activities.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> When reports emerged that they might be used for an armed operation, one anonymous US official described the notion as "completely insane".<ref name="wapomiamicondo" />

By 16 June 2019, Goudreau had compiled a list of required equipment, according to former [[United States Navy SEALs|United States Navy SEAL]] Ephraim Mattos, who met with Alcalá's troops while working in Colombia.<ref name="APgreen" /> The list included "320 [[M4 carbine|M4]] assault rifles, an anti-tank rocket launcher, [[Zodiac boat]]s, US$1 million in cash and state-of-the-art night vision goggles".<ref name="APgreen" /> According to Mattos, the trainees believed they had the backing of the U.S. government; after reviewing Silvercorp on the internet, he said: "I was like, 'Guys, guys, guys, this guy is not who he says he is.{{'"}}<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /><ref>{{Cite news|title=Ex-Green Beret captured in Venezuela believed U.S. backed overthrow plot: family|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latin-america/ex-green-beret-captured-venezuela-believed-u-s-backed-overthrow-n1208471|last=Schapiro|first=Rich|date=16 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|work=[[NBC News]]}}</ref>

=== Negotiations with Guaidó representatives: August–November 2019 ===
{{main|Guaidó administration–Silvercorp agreement}}

[[File:Silvercorp-Guaidó General Services Agreement Attachments.pdf|thumb|upright=1|page=41|The General Services Agreement Attachments signed between Guaidó government officials and Silvercorp USA in October 2019. Vergara and Rendón, who have since resigned their positions on the Strategy Committee, acknowledge they signed the agreement and the attachments, but say it was quickly cancelled.<ref name="Rendón-conclusiones" /><ref name=TalCualContract>{{Cite web|url=https://talcualdigital.com/esto-es-lo-que-dice-el-contrato-firmado-por-estrategas-de-guaido-y-silvercorp/|title=Esto es lo que dice el contrato firmado por estrategas de Guaidó y Silvercorp|date=8 May 2020|last=Amaya|first=Víctor|publisher=[[Tal Cual]]|language=es|trans-title=This is what the contract signed by Guaidó strategists and Silvercorp says}}</ref><ref name="bloomberg-resign">{{Cite web|title=Guaidó Aides Resign Posts After Botched Invasion of Venezuela|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/articles/2020-05-11/guaido-aides-resign-posts-after-botched-invasion-of-venezuela|last=Vasquez|first=Alex|website=[[Bloomberg News]] |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200605051328/https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/articles/2020-05-11/guaido-aides-resign-posts-after-botched-invasion-of-venezuela |archive-date= 5 June 2020 |access-date=14 May 2020|quote=Documents released by Goudreau show what seems to be Guaidó's signature on a preliminary contract and a video in which he spoke with him at least once.}}</ref>]]Guaidó established a Strategic Committee in August 2019 and named [[J. J. Rendón]] to head it.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="wapomiamicondo"/> The committee was tasked with exploring possibilities and testing scenarios for the removal of Maduro from power, with methods ranging from increased international condemnation of Maduro to armed action.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> After reviewing all legal means of removing Maduro,<ref name="WorldofReality">{{cite news |first1= Julian |last1= Borger |first2= Joe Parkin |last2= Daniels |first3= Chris |last3= McGreal |title= 'His head wasn't in the world of reality': how the plot to invade Venezuela fell apart |url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/08/his-head-wasnt-in-the-world-of-reality-how-the-plot-to-invade-venezuela-fell-apart |work= The Guardian |date= 8 May 2020 |access-date= 10 September 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200508062825/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/08/his-head-wasnt-in-the-world-of-reality-how-the-plot-to-invade-venezuela-fell-apart |archive-date= 8 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="Rendón-conclusiones">{{Cite interview|first=J. J.|last=Rendón|interviewer=[[Fernando del Rincón]]|title=J. J. Rendón habla sobre la Operación Gedeón|url=https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/2020/05/07/j-j-rendon-habla-sobre-la-operacion-gedeon-en-conclusiones-de-cnn-en-espanol/|publisher=CNN en Español (Conclusiones)|date=7 May 2020|trans-title=J. J. Rendón talks about Operation Gideon |quote= 'Acuérdate que el gobierno legítimo del presidente Guaidó no controla una fuerza policial en el país, por lo tanto se analizan todos los escenarios: alianzas con otros países, acciones propias, alzas de personas desde adentro, de los militares que están allá, uso eventual de actores que estaban fuera, militares retirados. Todos esos escenarios, como bien lo dijo el presidente: estamos analizando cosas por encima y por debajo de la mesa, se hicieron. De ahí a que se llegara a un acuerdo efectivo con este señor [Jordan Goudreau] al margen de la firma de ese acuerdo, no se le dio nunca luz verde' afirmó J.J. Rendón.<br />['Remember that the legitimate government of President Guaidó does not control a police force in the country, therefore all scenarios are analyzed: alliances with other countries, own actions, recruitment of people from within, of the military who are there, eventual use of actors who were outside, retired soldiers. All those scenarios, as the president said: analyzing things above and below the table, were done. From there, an effective agreement was reached with this man [Jordan Goudreau] apart from the signing of that agreement, it was never given the green light,' said J.J. Rendon.]}}</ref> the group adopted the position that the Venezuelan Constitution, the [[United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime]], and other treaties provided justification for pursuing a change of government.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> Among other options, Rendón considered an insurrection against the Maduro government. Foreign contractors would advise and support Venezuelans in a military operation to capture Maduro and replace his government with Guaido's.<ref name=WorldofReality/><ref name="Rendón-conclusiones"/><ref name=BBCPiglets/><ref name= Emboscada/>

Sources told ''The Wall Street Journal'' that López and others had reviewed six or more bids from [[private military companies]] to enter Venezuela, encourage a rebellion in the armed forces and overthrow Maduro.<ref name="WSJ26Jun" /> By 7 September 2019, Goudreau made a [[sales pitch]] to Rendón proposing the capture of Maduro and his officials and their extraction from Venezuela<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /><ref name="Bloombergcom2020" /> with a self-financed plan at a cost of $212.9 million, [[Collateralized debt obligation|backed]] by future oil sales.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /><ref name="Vox-Ridiculous2">{{Cite web |last=Ward |first=Alex |date=11 May 2020 |title=The 'ridiculous' failed coup attempt in Venezuela, explained |url=https://www.vox.com/2020/5/11/21249203/venezuela-coup-jordan-goudreau-maduro-guaido-explain |access-date=12 May 2020 |website=[[Vox (website)|Vox]] |language=en |quote=plan to send two teams into Maracaibo and Caracas, extract Maduro from his presidential mansion, and install Guaidó as president.}}</ref>

A General Services Agreement between Venezuela and Silvercorp was signed on 16 October 2019, by Goudreau on behalf of Silvercorp and Rendón and [[Sergio Vergara (politician)|Sergio Vergara]], on behalf of the Guaidó administration.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="wapomiamicondo" />  Within a week of signing the agreement, Goudreau reportedly claimed to have secured funding for the operation, but provided no proof.<ref name="wapomiamicondo">{{Cite news|title=From a Miami condo to the Venezuelan coast, how a plan to 'capture' Maduro went rogue|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/from-a-miami-condo-to-the-venezuelan-coast-how-a-plan-to-capture-maduro-went-rogue/2020/05/06/046222bc-8e4a-11ea-9322-a29e75effc93_story.html|last=Faiola|first=Anthony|date=6 May 2020|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|language=en|access-date=7 May 2020|url-access=subscription |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200508035515/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/from-a-miami-condo-to-the-venezuelan-coast-how-a-plan-to-capture-maduro-went-rogue/2020/05/06/046222bc-8e4a-11ea-9322-a29e75effc93_story.html |archive-date= 8 May 2020}}</ref> Rendón told reporters that shortly after signing the agreement, Goudreau began acting suspicious and demanding immediate payment of the $1.5 million retainer that was due within a five-day period according to the agreement.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /><ref name="waporeadattachments">{{Cite news|date=7 May 2020|title=Read the attachments to the General Services Agreement between the Venezuelan opposition and Silvercorp|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/context/read-the-attachments-to-the-general-services-agreement-between-the-venezuelan-opposition-and-silvercorp/e67f401f-8730-4f66-af53-6a9549b88f94/|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> Rendón transferred Goudreau $50,000 from his personal account for "expenses" (confirmed publicly by Goudreau<ref name="Forero2020" />) to buy more time, but the relationship between the two quickly deteriorated.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /><ref name="runrunes-Gedeon-Macutazo">{{Cite web|url=https://runrun.es/rr-es-plus/407981/operacion-gedeon-o-macutazo-un-desembarco-de-versiones-incongruentes/|title=Operación Gedeón o Macutazo: Un desembarco de versiones incongruentes|date=17 May 2020|access-date=17 May 2020|website=[[Runrunes]]|last=Fermín|first=Yeannaly|language=es|trans-title=Operation Gideon or Macutazo: A landing of inconsistent stories}}</ref>

On 8 November 2019, Goudreau met Rendón and the two had a heated argument.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> According to Rendón, he and other Guaidó administration officials "considered the operation dead" after this encounter.<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name="wapomiamicondo" /><ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /> Rendón attempted to provide a letter canceling the agreement, though Gourdeau refused.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> It was reported that Juan Guaidó himself signed a preliminary contract.<ref name="MiamiHerald-Guaido-center">{{Cite news |date=15 May 2020 |title=Letter and contract put Guaidó at center of failed Venezuelan raid to oust Maduro |work=[[Miami Herald]] |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article242767041.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200520023642/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article242767041.html |archive-date= 20 May 2020 |quote=In an interview with CNN en Español, J. J. Rendón, a colorful Venezuelan campaign adviser and opposition strategist, said that on Oct. 16, 2019, Guaidó had signed a 'preliminary' contract with Silvercorp.}}</ref>{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc=Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} Guaidó and his allies denied that he signed the contract directly.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc=Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="EVTV-Guaido-interview-set-up">{{Cite web |date=11 May 2020 |title=Presidente Guaidó: El montaje de la dictadura fue para generar victimización internacional y persecución interna |trans-title=President Guaidó: The dictator's set-up was to generate international victimization and internal persecution |url=https://evtvmiami.com/presidente-guaido-el-montaje-de-la-dictadura-fue-para-generar-victimizacion-internacional-y-persecucion-interna/ |website=EVTV |language=es}}</ref> Goudreau provided a covert recording of "what appears to be", according to the ''Miami Herald'',<ref name="TheMiamiHerald2020" /> a video call with Guaidó on 16 October 2019{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc=Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> in which Guaidó purportedly says that he was going to sign the document.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc=Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> Guaidó and his allies state that Rendón and Vergara signed on Guaidó's behalf;<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 May 2020 |title=Guaidó insiste en que falsificaron su firma en el contrato con Silvercorp |url=https://www.noticierodigital.com/2020/05/guaido-insiste-en-que-falsificaron-su-firma-en-el-supuesto-contrato-con-silvercorp/ |website=[[Noticiero Digital]]}}</ref> Rendón said that Guaidó "grew suspicious" of the "exploratory plan" having seen only an outline.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Itriago |first=Andreína |date=4 May 2020 |title=Guaidó se desvincula de presunta incursión militar contra Maduro |trans-title=Guaidó disassociates himself from alleged military incursion against Maduro |url=https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/venezuela/comunicado-de-guaido-a-las-acusaciones-de-maduro-sobre-plan-para-derrocarlo-491520 |access-date=12 May 2020 |website=[[El Tiempo (Colombia)|El Tiempo]] |language=es}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=6 May 2020 |title=El gobierno interino de Venezuela denunció que la dictadura de Nicolás Maduro intenta utilizar la Operación Gedeón para secuestrar a Juan Guaidó |trans-title=Interim government charged that Nicolas Maduro dictatorship is attempting to use Operation Gideon to abduct Juan Guaidó |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/05/06/el-gobierno-interino-de-venezuela-denuncio-que-la-dictadura-de-nicolas-maduro-intenta-utilizar-la-operacion-gedeon-para-secuestrar-a-juan-guaido/ |access-date=12 May 2020 |website=infobae |language=es}}</ref>

Although an agreement had been previously signed, the opposition attempted to distance themselves from their past interactions with Goudreau.<ref name="AssociatedPress20210" /><ref name="Makuch2021" /> The AP wrote that Goudreau said that he advanced the operation "without Guaidó's support".<ref name="AssociatedPress20210" /> ''The Washington Post'' wrote: "Goudreau counters that the agreement&nbsp;... bound the opposition to his services and initial fee. A seven-page document provided by Goudreau carries Guaidó's signature" with Rendón's and Vergara's.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" />

=== Alcalá and Goudreau resume preparations: December 2019===
{{external media|topic=<!--centered italic text--->|caption=<!-- text placed left or right of headerimage --->|video1={{YouTube|id=emUvqoaLcBM|title=Troops practicing clearing drills with model firearms}} from [[Vice (magazine)|''Vice'']] magazine<ref name="Makuch2021" />
|width=|float=right|headerimage=<!--search commons please include "|alt= text" and x-height in px "|x20px" example [[File:YouTube Logo 2017.svg|alt=YouTube logo|x20px|left]] or ...|right]] --->|video2={{YouTube|id=b4rDyjt-lCI|title=Another clearing drill}} from [[Vice (magazine)|''Vice'']] magazine<ref name="Makuch2021" />}}

Goudreau and Alcalá reportedly distanced themselves from the Venezuelan opposition due to their perception that the opposition was insincere and hypocritical because of alleged secret negotiations with the Maduro government.<ref name="APgreen" /> Though they no longer had the support of the opposition government, they resumed their preparations.<ref name="APgreen" /> Without aid from the US government or the Guaidó administration, Goudreau and Alcalá did not have the means required for a successful operation.<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" />

Former [[Venezuelan National Guard]] captain Javier Enrique Nieto Quintero, a leader of an international network of Venezuelan dissidents known as the Active Coalition of the Venezuelan International Reserve (CARIVE, {{langx|es|Coalición Activa de la Reserva Internacional Venezolana|italic=no}}), was approached to help provide operators. According to Nieto, CARIVE asked him to meet with Alcalá and that the tactical equipment presented by the former general, including rifles and night vision goggles,{{clarify|reason= something if off here grammatically, no idea what this sentence is trying to say or why the quote is needed|date=October 2023}} with Nieto stating the materials "showed the political leaders in Venezuela and the international community that the commitment was already there".<ref name="ViceNews2021TS7.00">{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2jtiQpxUH4 |title=Inside the World's Most Spectacularly Failed Coup |date=27 October 2021 |time=First 3:55–4:13, Second 7:00–8:15 |access-date=1 October 2023 |work=[[Vice News]]}}</ref>

By December 2019, Silvercorp had purchased a {{Convert|41|ft|m|adj=on}} fiberglass boat in Florida that was equipped with navigational equipment two months later.<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /> Silvercorp received funding from an anonymous source on 13 January 2020, according to lien records.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020" /> With Goudreau and translator Álvarez, two other former Green Beret operators, Airan Berry and Luke Denman, traveled to Colombia on a 16 January private flight from Opa-Locka, Florida to Barranquilla, Colombia provided by Durán.<ref name="AssociatedPress20211" /> Berry was a special forces engineer sergeant in the Army from 1996 to 2013,<ref name="MT-career-info">{{Cite web |last=Rempfer |first=Kyle |date=6 May 2020 |title=Here's the career info for the former Green Berets involved in Venezuela raid debacle |url=https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/05/06/heres-the-career-info-for-the-former-green-berets-involved-in-venezuela-raid-debacle/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200515234052/https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/05/06/heres-the-career-info-for-the-former-green-berets-involved-in-venezuela-raid-debacle/ |archive-date=15 May 2020 |access-date=17 May 2020 |website=Military Times}}</ref> while Denman left the Army in 2011.<ref name="2Tex2">{{Cite web |last=Wood |first=David |date=10 May 2020 |title=Two Texans Are Accused of Trying to Invade Venezuela. Their Family Members Want Answers. |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/two-texans-accused-of-invading-venezuela/ |access-date=11 May 2020 |website=Texas Monthly |language=en}}</ref> More than sixty Venezuelan dissidents gathered in [[Riohacha]], Colombia, to train.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" />

In March 2020, Goudreau traveled to [[Jamaica]] in the Silvercorp-owned fiberglass boat named ''Silverpoint'' where he met with former special forces friends and discussed Operation Gideon.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020" /><ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /> According to Jack Murphy, self-identified as a former [[United States Army Rangers|US Ranger]], the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] learned about the plan and warned Silvercorp not to go through with it on numerous occasions.<ref name="Makuch2021" /><ref name="Connecting-Vets-recruit">{{Cite news|last=Murphy|first=Jack|date=5 May 2020|title=Ex-Green Berets tried to recruit this vet for a failed coup. Now he's speaking out.|work=Connecting Vets|url=https://connectingvets.radio.com/articles/ex-green-berets-bungle-coup-attempt-in-venezuela|access-date=10 May 2020}}</ref> Goudreau then contacted Guaidó's officials one last time asking for funding.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020" /> ''The Wall Street Journal'' reported that the planned operation was "widely known to former Venezuelan soldiers who considered participating, Venezuelan opposition figures, senior Colombian intelligence officials and even the CIA, which monitored their activities in La Guajira".<ref name="Forero2020">{{Cite web |last1=Forero |first1=Juan |last2=Vyas |first2=Kejal |date=10 May 2020 |title=Poorly Organized and Barely Hidden, Venezuela Invasion Was Doomed to Fail |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/poorly-organized-and-barely-hidden-venezuela-invasion-was-doomed-to-fail-11589122800 |id={{ProQuest|2400243484}} |quote=the plan, which was widely known to former Venezuelan soldiers who considered participating, Venezuelan opposition figures, senior Colombian intelligence officials and even the CIA, which monitored their activities in La Guajira |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal}}</ref> On 28 March, the boat was damaged, triggering an [[emergency position-indicating radio beacon]] that alerted authorities in [[Curaçao]], who rescued Goudreau.<ref name= AP-Goudreau-investigation/> They returned him to Florida and COVID travel restrictions prevented him from rejoining his men.<ref name=AP-Goudreau-investigation/>

[[Hernán Alemán (politician)|Hernán Alemán]], an opposition politician who initially supported the plan, while describing Goudreau as a friend, indicated in an interview following the event that he did not know any details surrounding the contract or discussions that took place in the United States.<ref name="Makuch2021" /><ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare">{{Cite interview|last=Alemán|first=Hernán|interviewer=Anaisa Rodríguez|title=Dip. Hernán Alemán, a ND: Averiguaré quién sacó a Cliver Alcalá así me cueste la vida|url=https://www.noticierodigital.com/2020/05/dip-hernan-aleman-a-nd-averiguare-quien-saco-a-cliver-alcala-asi-me-cueste-la-vida/|language=es|trans-title=Deputy Hernán Alemán to Noticiero Digital: I will find out who took out Cliver Alcalá if it's the last thing I do|date=16 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="contrapunto-not-magnicide">{{Cite web |first= Zurima |last= Vásquez |url=https://contrapunto.com/nacional/politica/hernan-aleman-operacion-gedeon-no-era-efectuar-un-magnicidio/|title=Diputado Hernán Alemán: Operación Gedeón no era para efectuar un magnicidio sino para que Maduro fuera a la cárcel|date=8 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|website={{ill|Contrapunto.com|es|Contrapunto (portal de Internet)}}|language=es|trans-title=Deputy Hernán Alemán: Operation Gideon was not to assassinate Maduro, it was so he would go to jail|via=TVV Noticias}}</ref><ref name="talcual-Aleman-nobody-financed">{{Cite web|url=https://talcualdigital.com/hernan-aleman-nadie-financio-la-operacion-gedeon-y-nos-ayudaron-por-mendicidad/ |title=Hernán Alemán: Nadie financió la Operación Gedeón|date=19 May 2020|access-date=19 May 2020|website=[[Tal Cual]]|language=es|trans-title=Hernán Alemán: Nobody financed Operation Gideon}}</ref> He stated that Rendón never financed the operation and that he and Alcalá undertook the operation with Goudreau without his party's knowledge,<ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare"/> deciding to finance the operation themselves.<ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare" /><ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /> Alemán said that at its peak, the group consisted of four camps occupied by 150 military.<ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare" /> He added that the operation was compromised and had been infiltrated, saying that after Alcalá's arrest, the operation's control was transferred to other people, there was no contact with the new leaders, and other insurgents said Sequea Torres was a mole<ref name="talcual-Aleman-nobody-financed"/> – an allegation repeated by others<ref name="InfobaeWilmer">{{cite web |last=Goyret |first=Lucas |date=14 October 2020 |title=Wilmer Azuaje dio detalles del informe que presentó en La Haya sobre las ejecuciones extrajudiciales en Venezuela |trans-title=Wilmer Azuaje gave details of the report he presented in The Hague on extrajudicial executions in Venezuela |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/10/14/wilmer-azuaje-dio-detalles-del-informe-que-presento-en-la-haya-sobre-las-ejecuciones-extrajudiciales-en-venezuela/ |access-date=17 September 2023 |work=Infobae |language=es}} Contains a link to the full report.</ref><ref name= Barraez2020>{{cite news |title= Antonio Sequea habría sido infiltrado del régimen en fallida Operación Gedeón |language= es |trans-title= Antonio Sequea was infiltrated by the regime in the failed Operation Gideon |publisher= NTN24 |date= 9 May 2020 |url= https://www.ntn24.com/noticias-judicial/antonio-sequea-habria-sido-infiltrado-del-regimen-en-fallida-operacion-gedeon-121910 |access-date= 17 September 2023}}</ref> but denied by [[Jorge Arreaza]], Maduro's foreign minister.<ref name= BBCPiglets/>

The Venezuelan government later published an audio recording of Alemán by Venezuelan intelligence, in which he reportedly tells a listener that he had met a CIA officer at the U.S. ambassador's house; [[Vice (magazine)|''Vice'']] magazine printed a portion of Alemán's alleged conversation (noting the recording "could very well have been tampered with by a security service loyal to Maduro") which has Alemán saying, "Here in a meeting with all the bigwigs in the house of the [U.S. ambassador] ... I was even speaking with the guy from the CIA. They put me there so that the CIA guy would talk to me".<ref name="Makuch2021" /> Alemán later acknowledged in an interview with [[Infobae]] that the voice on the recording was his, at a social gathering celebrating the 4 and 5 July, saying that the distortion to make it appear they had conspired with the US was untrue. He stated that, "If there was one thing we were always very clear about, it was that the United States was not going to get involved in an action like the one [we] planned."<ref>{{Cite web 
|first= Sebastiana |last= Barráez|title=Hernán Alemán Pérez, sobre la Operación Gedeón: 'No se planificaron asesinatos, pero sí agarrar a los cabecillas del régimen de narcos y entregarlos a los EEUU' |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/05/19/hernan-aleman-perez-sobre-la-operacion-gedeon-no-se-planificaron-asesinatos-pero-si-agarrar-a-los-cabecillas-del-regimen-de-narcos-y-entregarlos-a-los-eeuu/ |access-date= 19 September 2023 |website=[[Infobae]] |date= 19 May 2020 |language=es |trans-title= Hernán Alemán Pérez, on Operation Gedeón: 'Murders were not planned, but the leaders of the drug regime were to be captured and handed over to the United States' }}</ref>

=== Extradition of Alcalá to the United States: March 2020 ===
[[File:Clíver Alcalá Cordones.jpg|thumb|[[Clíver Alcalá Cordones]], one of the alleged leaders of the operation, indicted by the United States]]

A shipment of weapons and tactical gear was confiscated on 23 March 2020 by Colombian authorities tipped off by the [[Drug Enforcement Administration]] (DEA), with former DEA officials initially believing that the equipment was being sent to leftist guerrillas or criminal gangs.<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /><ref name="APgreen" /> The impounded truck was headed for Venezuela carrying 26 [[semi-automatic rifle]]s, [[night vision goggles]], radios, and 15 [[combat helmet]]s produced by High-End Defense Solutions, a company owned by [[Venezuelan Americans]].<ref name="APgreen" /><ref name="FTfoiledplot">{{Cite news|title=Mystery surrounds foiled 'plot' to liberate Venezuela|url=https://www.ft.com/content/0f52198e-0e17-4890-a6e7-159a510a0e34|last=Long|first=Gideon|date=4 April 2020|work=[[Financial Times]]|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref>

On 26 March 2020, the United States accused Maduro of narcoterrorism, and through its [[Narcotics Rewards Program]] offered a US$15 million reward for information leading to his arrest, plus an additional US$10 million each for information leading to the arrest of four close Maduro allies: [[Diosdado Cabello]], [[Maikel Moreno]], [[Tareck El Aissami]], [[Vladimir Padrino López]] and Cilver Alcalá, one of the alleged leaders of the operation.<ref>[https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/03/26/estados-unidos-sancionara-al-regimen-de-nicolas-maduro-por-sus-vinculos-con-el-narcoterrorismo-internacional/ "Estados Unidos acusó de narcoterrorismo a Nicolás Maduro y ofreció USD 15 millones por datos que lleven a su arresto"] [The United States accused Nicolás Maduro of narco-terrorism and offered USD 15 million for data leading to his arrest] {{in lang|es}}. ''Infobae'', 26 March 2020</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=A defiant Maduro threatens 'cowboy' Trump after drug charge|url=https://apnews.com/2ceb488313ebb3334f64f6ad705e33b8|last1=Goodman|first1=Joshua|last2=Smith|first2=Scott|date=27 March 2020|website=Associated Press (Miami)|access-date=10 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=US indicts Venezuela's Maduro on narcoterrorism charges|url=https://apnews.com/d82797206561db03851e47df125c243f|last1=Goodman|first1=Joshua|last2=Smith|first2=Scott|date=26 March 2020|website=Associated Press |location=Miami|access-date=10 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite press release|title=Nicolás Maduro Moros and 14 Current and Former Venezuelan Officials Charged with Narco-Terrorism, Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Criminal Charges|publisher=United States Department of Justice|date=26 March 2020|url=https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/nicol-s-maduro-moros-and-14-current-and-former-venezuelan-officials-charged-narco-terrorism|location=Office of Public Affairs}}</ref> The same day, Alcalá placed a video on Twitter where he assumed responsibility for "a military operation against the Maduro dictatorship" that included the shipment of weapons captured in Colombia, stating that the United States, Colombia, and Guaidó officials had signed an agreement to overthrow Maduro.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="FTfoiledplot" /> After Alcalá assumed responsibility for the weapons shipment, the Colombian attorney general announced on 28 March that an investigation into Alcalá's role in the shipment had been opened.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Fiscalía colombiana investiga a Clíver Alcalá|url=https://www.el-carabobeno.com/fiscalia-colombiana-investiga-a-cliver-alcala/|date=29 March 2020|website=El Carabobeño|language=es|access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref>

Guaidó denied knowledge of the event while United States Special Representative to Venezuela [[Elliott Abrams]] described Alcalá's statement as "despicable and quite dangerous". Abrams later said that Alcalá "was put up to making those terrible charges by the [Maduro] regime".<ref name="FTfoiledplot" /> Alcalá was extradited to the United States on drug trafficking charges after voluntarily surrendering on about 27 March.<ref>{{cite news|title=Cliver Alcalá se entregó a la DEA y fue extraditado a EEUU|url=https://www.noticierodigital.com/2020/03/cliver-alcala-habria-sido-extraditado-a-eeuu-en-un-avion-de-la-dea-segun-celia-mendoza/|date=27 March 2020|agency=Reuters|work=Noticiero Digital|access-date=9 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=28 March 2020|title=Alleged Maduro accomplice surrenders to U.S. agents, will help prosecution: sources|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-venezuela-dea-exclusive-idUSKBN21E3IQ|access-date=26 May 2020}}</ref>

The Venezuelan government said that Alcalá was a US agent and that, after the operation failed, the United States government used narcoterrorism charges as a way to transport him to the United States to prevent him from revealing more secrets.<ref name="FTfoiledplot" /> In the context of reacting to the intercepted shipment on 26 March, Maduro stated that Alcalá was hired by the DEA to assassinate him, "but he failed because we made him fail".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eluniversal.com/politica/65720/maduro-a-donald-trump-por-acusaciones-eres-un-miserable|title=Maduro a Donald Trump, tras acusaciones: 'Eres un miserable'|date=26 March 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|website=[[El Universal (Caracas)]]|last=Barrios|first=Sarah|language=es|trans-title=Maduro to Donald Trump, following indictments: "You are a wretch"}}</ref>

According to Alemán, who acknowledges participating in the planning of the operation up until the point Alcalá was extradited to the United States, Sequea took control of the operation and replaced military personnel.<ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare" /> Alemán remarked that Goudreau was unable to exercise command because he was in the United States.<ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare" /> Alemán, saying he was basing his statements on others, accused Sequea of being a mole and of selling the group out.<ref name="ND-Hernan-Aleman-Averiguare" />

In November 2021, Alcalá's lawyers lodged a motion to have the US charges dismissed along with a statement that US officials at the highest levels of the [[CIA]], [[United States Department of the Treasury|Department of the Treasury]], [[United States Department of Justice|Department of Justice]], the [[United States National Security Council|National Security Council]] and the DEA were aware of his efforts to overthrow Maduro. The attorney also stated Rendón and two Guaidó allies were aware of Alcalá's coup plan.<ref>{{cite news |title=Alleged Maduro co-conspirator says CIA knew about a 2020 Venezuela coup plan |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-01-29/alleged-maduro-co-conspirator-says-cia-knew-about-coup-plans/100790342 |access-date=9 March 2022 |work=ABC News |location = Australia |date=29 January 2022 |language=en-AU}}</ref> In June 2023, Alcalá pled guilty in the U.S. to "two counts of providing material support to a terrorist group and illicit transfer of firearms", with the narcotics charges dropped.<ref name= Reuters30June23>{{cite news |first= Luc |last= Cohen |title= Venezuela ex-general pleads guilty to US charges of helping FARC |date= 30 June 2023 |work = Reuters |access-date= 7 September 2023 |url= https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/venezuela-ex-general-pleads-guilty-us-charges-helping-farc-2023-06-30/ }}</ref>

==== Prior knowledge of operation ====
According to the Associated Press, the operation "was infiltrated by Maduro's vast, Cuban-trained intelligence network" early on. The Associated Press asserted that it had investigated and published about the operation before it happened.<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation"/> The Venezuelan government knew the location of the camps on Guajira Peninsula by September 2019, with [[Vice President of Venezuela]] [[Delcy Rodríguez]] announcing the coordinates of the militants while speaking at the [[general debate of the seventy-fourth session of the United Nations General Assembly|general debate of the United Nations General Assembly]].<ref name="AssociatedPress2021" /><ref name=AJVideoTS6:20>{{Cite AV media|date=29 April 2021 |title=The Bay of Piglets |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IARuBqUUm4Q |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[Al Jazeera English|Al Jazeera]] |time = 6:20}}</ref> ''The Washington Post'' wrote that Maduro "was well-informed of the effort virtually from its start".<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" />

Two days after the confiscation of weapons and munitions in Colombia, on 25 March, the Venezuelan Minister of Communication and Information, [[Jorge Rodríguez (Venezuelan politician)|Jorge Rodríguez]], gave a televised press conference in which he published details related to the training camps. Rodríguez named former Venezuelan army captain Roberto Levid "Pantera" Colina Ibarra,<ref name="InfobaeWilmer" /><ref name=Delgado2020/><ref name="Wapo-Herrero" /> whom he identified as a murderer, as the leader of one of the training sites with the support of Colombian President [[Iván Duque]].<ref name="CNN-esp-MaduroKnew">{{Cite news|title=Gobierno de Maduro sabía de la incursión a Venezuela al menos un mes antes de que ocurriera|url=https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/2020/05/11/gobierno-de-maduro-sabia-de-la-incursion-a-venezuela-al-menos-un-mes-antes-de-que-ocurriera/|last1=Meza|first1=Alfredo|date=11 May 2020|access-date=16 May 2020|work=[[CNN en Español]]|last2=Weffer Cifuentes|first2=Laura|language=es|trans-title=Maduro government knew of incursion into Venezuela at least a month before it occurred}}</ref> Rodríguez mentioned that there were three American instructors at the training camps.<ref name="CNN-esp-MaduroKnew" /> "We know their cover names: agent Jordan, agent Luke, and agent Aaron," he announced.<ref name="CNN-esp-MaduroKnew" />

On 28 March, [[Diosdado Cabello]] identified Goudreau as an adviser for Alcalá during episode 294 of the television show {{lang|es|italic=yes|[[Con El Mazo Dando]]}}.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="runrunes-Gedeon-Macutazo" /><ref name="runrun-Mazo">{{Cite web|url=https://runrun.es/rr-es-plus/406661/huella-digital-jordan-goudreau-dejo-todas-las-opciones-sobre-un-penero/|title=Huella digital: Jordan Goudreau dejó todas las opciones sobre un peñero|date=11 May 2020|access-date=15 May 2020|website=runrun.es|last=Coscojuela|first=Sarai|publisher=[[Runrunes]]|trans-title=Fingerprint (Digital Footprint): Jordan Goudreau left all options on a fishing boat}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.correodelcaroni.com/nacional/5314-el-caso-de-la-operacion-gedeon-estremecio-la-movediza-arena-politica-venezolana|title=El caso de la 'Operación Gedeón' estremeció la movediza arena política venezolana|date=15 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|website=Correo del Caroní<!-- Do not use {{ill}} in CS1 templates -->|last=Guerra|first=Carlos|language=es|trans-title=The case of "Operation Gideon" shifted the Venezuelan political quicksand}}</ref> Cabello also identified by first name the two Americans; he referred to Denman and Berry only as "Luke" and "Aaron" [phonetic spelling].<ref name="runrun-Mazo" /> Cabello also exhibited photographs purportedly showing Goudreau, Silvercorp and content from their social media profiles,<ref name="runrun-Mazo" /> and photographs from Instagram depicting Goudreau providing security services during the Venezuela Aid Live concert in [[Cúcuta]] and at a Trump rally in [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]].<ref name="runrunes-Gedeon-Macutazo" /><ref name="runrun-Mazo" /> The purpose of broadcasting the images was to show that the United States was allegedly behind the international effort to remove Maduro from power and was conspiring with narcotics traffickers, referring to Alcalá.<ref name="runrun-Mazo" /> The program also exhibited excerpts from various media organizations discussing the alleged contract between Guaidó and Silvercorp.<ref name="runrun-Mazo" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Clíver Alcalá, exmilitar venezolano, ya está en EE. UU. custodiado por la DEA|url=https://www.elespectador.com/noticias/el-mundo/cliver-alcala-exmilitar-venezolano-ya-esta-en-ee-uu-custodiado-por-la-dea-articulo-911760|date=28 March 2020|website=ElEspectador.com|language=ES|access-date=26 May 2020}}</ref>

Around the middle of 2019, Maduro stated there was a "plan&nbsp;... to get 32 mercenaries into Venezuela to kill me and to kill Venezuelan revolutionary leaders".<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /> After news of the event broke, Maduro was explicit about the level of insider knowledge his government had, saying in his first public appearance: "We knew everything: what they were talking about, what they ate, what they drank, what they didn't drink, who financed them."<ref name="CNN-esp-MaduroKnew" /><ref name="EClosabiamaduro">{{Cite web|title=Lo sabíamos todo', dice Maduro sobre incursión en Macuto|url=https://efectococuyo.com/politica/lo-sabiamos-todo-dice-maduro-sobre-incursion-en-macuto-y-anuncia-detencion-de-13-personas/|date=5 May 2020|website=Efecto Cocuyo|language=en|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref> According to ''The Washington Post'', a "senior opposition official called the Alcalá-Goudreau plan 'the worst-kept secret in Venezuela'.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" />

According to [[McClatchy]] and Goudreau, officials within the Trump administration had advance knowledge of the plan<ref name=TheMiamiHerald2020/><ref name=Hall2021>{{Cite news |last1=Hall |first1=Kevin G. |first2= Antonio M. |last2= Delgado|first3= Michael |last3= Wilner |date=20 May 2021 |title=Ex-Green Berets jailed in bungled Venezuela coup may have been duped, negotiator says |work=[[McClatchy DC]] |url=https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/world/latin-america/article251547193.html |access-date= 19 October 2023}}</ref> while ''The Wall Street Journal'' said that the CIA monitored and knew about the plot.<ref name="Forero2020" /> The United States denied involvement and when asked about its knowledge by ''The Wall Street Journal'', the CIA deferred comments to the White House, which said it did not have direct roles in the operation.<ref name="Forero2020" /><ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How"/> The Colombian government said it first had knowledge of the plot after its authorities captured weapons destined for the operation and following the detention of Alcalá, though the Venezuelan opposition said that Colombian intelligence and high-level officials knew of the plot for months.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /> In an audio recording, members of the Venezuelan opposition are heard discussing that [[President of Colombia]] [[Álvaro Uribe]] opposed any cooperation with Alcalá.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" />

=== Final preparations, Associated Press article: April–May 2020 ===
By the time of the landing attempt, many of the dissidents had abandoned their camps following the arrest of Alcalá, investigations by Colombian authorities, and the growing pandemic;<ref name="APgreen" /> because Goudreau's promises had failed to materialize; and due to rumors that Maduro had infiltrated the operation.<ref name="WAPO-Faiola-How" /> ''[[The Guardian]]'' suggested that Goudreau went ahead with the operation despite its poor planning because he was seeking the US$15 million reward that the US government placed on Maduro.<ref name=WorldofReality/>

In November 2020, the ''[[Miami Herald]]'' published an article based on an interview with an anonymous source known by the nickname ''Cacique'', "a Venezuelan rebel officer who operated the communications center for the failed incursion from an undisclosed city in the United States"<ref name= Delgado2020/> and was a CARIVE member and Nieto confidant.<ref name="Makuch2021"/> He stated that the Maduro government had offered a reward for Colina, and two to three days before the operation, a member of the group, who directed a faction of five moles, "sold the exact landing coordinates shortly before departure", seeking to collect on the reward.<ref name= Delgado2020/> According to the report, Maduro intelligence knew the exact coordinates where the invaders would attempt their landing, and were expecting their arrival.<ref name= "Delgado2020" />

As the planned operation approached, a new commander moved the group into the arid area on the Guajira Peninsula of northern Colombia, with one of the dissidents saying that the group spent their time hiding and held conviction for their cause of overthrowing Maduro.<ref name="Makuch2021" />

The AP published a 1 May 2020 article written by Joshua Goodman about Goudreau, the plan and its history, and the training camps, writing that the scheme was "far-fetched" and that people who knew him believed he was "in way over his head".<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /> The article suggested that the Maduro government may have known of the plan since late-March 2020, but certainly knew by 1 May.<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /> Maduro confirmed that he knew of the plan by the evening of 1 May, and said that it had been initially planned for 10 March, but postponed due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref name="EClosabiamaduro" />

Objectives included securing the [[General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence]] headquarters, neutralizing the [[Presidential Honor Guard (Venezuela)|Presidential Honor Guard]] at [[Miraflores Palace]] and securing an airfield, where they would extract Maduro, who was code named "Jackpot".<ref name="Bloombergcom2020" /> Silvercorp would then stay to maintain humanitarian aid distribution while Goudreau would arrive in Caracas following the operation's success.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020" /> When asked why his troops would land at one of Venezuela's most fortified coastlines, twenty miles from Caracas and next to the country's biggest airport, he cited as inspiration the [[Battle of Gaugamela]], won by [[Alexander the Great]], who had "struck deep into the heart of the enemy".<ref name="AP4May">{{Cite news|last1=Goodman|first1=Joshua|last2=Smith|first2=Scott|date=3 May 2020|title=Ex-Green Beret claims he led foiled raid into Venezuela|work=[[Associated Press]]|url=https://apnews.com/5f44624bb7442d85e431cd64a4aed3a8|access-date=16 May 2020}}</ref> During the event, Goudreau gave an interview by telephone from Florida to an AP reporter.<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /> Goudreau said that his intention in launching the raid was to "introduce a catalyst", acknowledging that it is impractical to believe "60 guys can come in and topple a regime".<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" /> Despite the long odds, he expressed his belief that "60 guys can go in and inspire the military and police to flip and join in the liberation of their country".<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation" />

== Landing attempt ==
{{POV section|date= October 2023|reason= does not represent all points of view, see [[Talk:Operation Gideon (2020)#Removal of well-cited content about ambush]] }}
[[File:Operación Gedeón 2020 - Escudo Bolivariano.png|thumb|upright=1.5|Venezuelan authorities monitoring the [[Caribbean Sea|Caribbean]] coast during the ''Bolivarian Shield'' exercises]]

The boats launched from a beach in the [[Guajira Peninsula]] of northern Colombia, on 2 May 2020 in two waves, beginning with a pilot boat carrying 10–11 men, and followed by a larger boat carrying 46–47, including two former [[United States Army Special Forces]] members employed as [[Private military company|private military contractors]] for Silvercorp.<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /><ref name="Makuch2021"/><ref name="Delgado2020">{{cite news |last1=Delgado |first1=Antonio Maria |last2=Hall |first2=Kevin G. |last3=Dasgupta |first3=Shirsho |date=18 November 2020 |title=Venezuelan insurgent describes how betrayal in ranks produced failure, summary executions |work=Miami Herald |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/article247237189.html |access-date=11 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119092852/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/article247237189.html |archive-date=19 November 2020}} Also available via [https://www.newspapers.com/image/696501515/?terms=Azuaje%20Macuto%20%22International%20Criminal%20Court%22&match=1 Newspapers.com] from ''Longview Daily News'', 22 November 2020, p. B8.</ref><ref name="BBCPiglets">{{cite news |first= Linda |last= Pressly|date=30 July 2020 |title='Bay of Piglets': A 'bizarre' plot to capture a president |publisher=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/stories-53557235 |access-date=27 September 2023}}</ref> The force traveled about {{Convert|400|mi|km}} through the ocean, passing [[Aruba]] and [[Curaçao]], planning to meet with other insurgents stationed inland that possessed weapons caches and fighting vehicles.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020">{{Cite news |last1=Borrell |first1=Brendan |last2=Solomon |first2=Christopher |date=1 July 2020 |title=The Mercenary Who Botched a Maduro Coup Is Lying Low in Florida |language=en |work=[[Bloomberg.com]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-07-01/how-green-beret-jordan-goudreau-tried-to-oust-venezuela-s-maduro |url-status=live |access-date=10 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200701115956/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-07-01/how-green-beret-jordan-goudreau-tried-to-oust-venezuela-s-maduro |archive-date=1 July 2020 |id={{EBSCOhost|144342321|dbcode= bth}}}}</ref> The two boats eventually lost contact with one another.<ref name="Makuch2021" />

The Maduro administration first acknowledged a "maritime invasion" at 07:30&nbsp;a.m. on Sunday, 3 May 2020, in an announcement from Interior Minister [[Néstor Reverol]].<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /> According to their version, a firefight ensued when the occupants of the first boat, led by Colina, shot at the Venezuelan authorities who were waiting for them to reach the shore at [[Macuto, Vargas|Macuto]], [[La Guaira (state)|La Guaira]].<ref name="BBCPiglets" /><ref name="Delgado2020" /><ref name="Wapo-Herrero" /><ref name= GobiernoSabia/> Opposition lawmaker [[Wilmer Azuaje]] and journalist Sebastiana Barráez said that Venezuelan authorities had advance knowledge of the landing and that they staged the firefight, at odds with the government's account<ref name= Delgado2020/> that the confrontation began {{em|after}} Colina started shooting.<ref name= InfobaeWilmer/><ref name= GobiernoSabia>{{cite news |title= Gobierno sabía sobre planes de incursión armada por las costas, según Jorge Rodríguez |language= es |trans-title= Government knew about plans for an armed incursion along the coasts, according to Jorge Rodríguez |work= [[Tal Cual]] |date= 5 May 2020 |url= https://talcualdigital.com/jorge-rodriguez-vincula-a-juan-guaido-con-intento-de-invasion-maritima/|access-date= 8 October 2020}}</ref>

The first boat was sunk by Venezuelan security forces in the pre-dawn hours of Sunday, 3 May 2020, near [[Macuto, Vargas|Macuto]], [[La Guaira (state)|La Guaira]].<ref name="BBCPiglets" /><ref name="Delgado2020" /><ref name="Wapo-Herrero" /> After initially reporting that eight individuals were killed and two captured, Venezuelan spokespersons revised the number of deceased to six.<ref name="ajwhatweknow" /> One of the men killed was the first boat's leader Colina, who was alleged to have directed a training camp in Riohacha.<ref name="BBCMundo" /><ref name="Delgado2020"/><ref>{{Cite web|title=Confirman la muerte del capitán Robert Colina, alias Pantera, durante enfrentamiento en Macuto | trans-title= Death of Robert Colina, known as Pantera, during clash in Macuto confirmed|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/confirman-la-muerte-del-capitan-robert-colina-alias-pantera-durante-enfrentamiento-en-macuto/|date=4 May 2020|website=El Nacional|language=es|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref>

In the afternoon of 3 May – after the first boat's arrival at Macuto and before the second boat was intercepted – Goudreau released a video to Twitter, appearing next to the CARIVE leader Nieto, in which he dubbed the plot ''Operation Gideon'', and announced that "[a]t 1700 hours, a daring amphibious raid was launched from the border of Colombia deep into the heart of Caracas".<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /> Goudreau said that the operation was ongoing and that "units have been activated in the south, east and west of Venezuela".<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /><ref name="BBCPiglets"/> Goudreau later acknowledged misleading the media with false information to allow time for the men to escape.<ref name="TheMiamiHerald2020"/> In the video, Nieto said that the objective of the operation was to detain the leadership of the Maduro government and free political prisoners.<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" />

The occupants of the second boat were reportedly destined for an area near [[Caracas]] where they would set up a camp under the supervision of Berry and Denman in preparation for an invasion force they hoped would attract disaffected Venezuelan soldiers looking to join the efforts to remove Maduro from power.<ref name="Makuch2021" /> According to a source close to the mission, the plan was for the men to spend a few days in safe houses before moving covertly to Caracas.<ref name="BBCPiglets"/> A survivor of the second boat who managed to evade capture told ''VICE News'' that his group had received word from the operation's leadership that the mission was a failure and that they should attempt to escape into the mountains.<ref name="Makuch2021" /> An individual on the second boat later reported that the craft had experienced engine problems and had difficulty navigating due to excessive weight,<ref name="Delgado2020" /> with the boat's canopy, the uniforms of soldiers and even other gear being thrown overboard in an attempt to make it to shore.<ref name="AJVideoTS17.29">{{Cite AV media|date=29 April 2021 |title=The Bay of Piglets |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IARuBqUUm4Q |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[Al Jazeera English|Al Jazeera]] |time = 17.29}}</ref> Goudreau told the ''Washington Post'' that he last spoke to the crew on 4 May around noon and that he engaged in efforts to "secure a vessel out of Aruba to 'extract' them".<ref name="Wapo-Herrero">{{cite news |last1=Herrero |first1=Ana Vanessa |last2=Faiola |first2=Anthony |date=3 May 2020 |title=Venezuelan government says it stopped 'invasion' launched from Colombia |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/venezuela-maduro-armed-invasion-guaido-opposition/2020/05/03/efb2fa88-8d51-11ea-9322-a29e75effc93_story.html |access-date=11 May 2020 |id={{ProQuest|2397437245}}}}</ref> Most of the men on the second boat were dropped off along the shoreline to attempt escape from Venezuelan authorities, but Sequea, Denman, and Berry remained on board, possibly with the intention of seeking refuge in [[international waters]].<ref name="Makuch2021" /><ref name="BBCPiglets" /><ref name="Bloombergcom2020" />

Those remaining in the second boat were intercepted off the coast of [[Chuao]] by helicopters and Coast Guard boats, and did not put up any resistance.<ref name="Makuch2021" /><ref name="EClosabiamaduro" /><ref name="Otis2020">{{Cite news |last1=Otis |first1=John |last2=Vyas |first2=Kejal |last3=Donati |first3=Jessica |date=6 May 2020 |title='Freedom Fighters' Led by American Tried Invading Venezuela |language=en-US |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/freedom-fighters-led-by-american-tried-invading-venezuela-11588722164 |url-access=subscription |access-date=12 May 2020 |id={{ProQuest|2398386098}}}}</ref> Eight men, including Sequea, Berry, Denman, and Josnars Adolfo Baduel, son of former Chávez Defense Minister [[Raúl Baduel]], were captured from the second boat.<ref name="EClosabiamaduro" /><ref name="infobae-2ndincursion">{{Cite web |date=4 May 2020 |title=El régimen de Nicolás Maduro frustró una segunda "incursión" de la Operación Gedeón: ocho personas fueron detenidas |trans-title=Maduro regime thwarted a second "incursion" of Operation Gideon: eight arrested |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/05/04/el-regimen-de-nicolas-maduro-frustro-una-segunda-incursion-de-la-operacion-gedeon-ocho-personas-fueron-detenidas/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200505113030/https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/05/04/el-regimen-de-nicolas-maduro-frustro-una-segunda-incursion-de-la-operacion-gedeon-ocho-personas-fueron-detenidas/ |archive-date=5 May 2020 |access-date=26 September 2023 |website=infobae}}</ref> Two other individuals were detained in Puerto Cruz later that day.<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella" /><ref name="infobae-2ndincursion" />
[[File:Operación Gedeón 2020 - Militant equipment.png|thumb|upright=1.5|Equipment and [[identity document]]s allegedly brought into Venezuela during the incursion]]
The Venezuelan military reported that the "mercenaries" had "war materials" on their boats.<ref name="skybotchedplot">{{Cite web |title=Venezuela attack: Former US special forces soldier says he led botched plot to overthrow President Maduro |url=https://news.sky.com/story/venezuela-attack-former-us-special-forces-soldier-says-he-led-botched-plot-to-overthrow-president-maduro-11982836 |access-date=5 May 2020 |website=Sky News |language=en}}</ref> The Maduro government reported that the items seized included vehicles for mounting machine guns, weapons, and uniforms embroidered with an American flag.<ref name="Heraldo-EFE">{{Cite news |date=4 May 2020 |title=El Gobierno de Maduro denuncia un ataque por mar que la oposición ve como un montaje |work=El Heraldo de Aragón |agency=EFE News |url=https://www.heraldo.es/noticias/internacional/2020/05/04/el-gobierno-de-maduro-denuncia-un-ataque-por-mar-que-la-oposicion-ve-como-un-montaje-1372866.html |url-status=live |access-date=30 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510140706/https://www.heraldo.es/noticias/internacional/2020/05/04/el-gobierno-de-maduro-denuncia-un-ataque-por-mar-que-la-oposicion-ve-como-un-montaje-1372866.html |archive-date=10 May 2020}}</ref> Speaking on national television that day, Reverol said that the Venezuelan military's defensive operation was ongoing, and would be for several days.<ref name="skybotchedplot" /> By 15 May, the Maduro government reported that it had arrested 39 other defectors who had attempted to flee Venezuela, reporting a total of 91 arrested in the plot.<ref name=DER/> All but four of those who left the Guajira Peninsula were killed, arrested during the attempted landing, or captured in subsequent search operations.<ref name="Delgado2020"/>

==Aftermath==
Different versions of the narrative led to questions about the operation.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc=Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<ref name="BBCPiglets" /><ref name="WaPo19July2020">{{cite news |date=19 July 2020 |title=Participant, U.S. puppet or Maduro's mole in coup plot? |newspaper=The Washington Post |id={{ProQuest|2424697894}}}}</ref>{{efn|Neuman wrote, "But there were too many questions without answers&nbsp;... was the point to create a paper trail? Did someone want something to hold over Guaidó's head? Or was someone looking to undermine Guaidó and make him look foolish and reckless? Or was it simply what it appeared to be – an incredibly naive and badly executed effort to hire a mercenary force to solve the problem that the opposition hadn't been able to solve on its own?"{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} <br />* The BBC questioned: "Did they know Nicolas Maduro's government had intelligence about the conspiracy? Venezuelans are some of the most connected people on Earth, but apparently only those in charge had access to cell phones. One source says the commander, Antonio Sequea, was aware of Cabello's TV expose and other comments made by Nicolas Maduro's ministers about the conspiracy, but he assured supporters in the US he had everything under control. Did Jordan Goudreau know the operation was compromised?"<ref name=BBCPiglets/> <br />* A July 2020 article in ''The Washington Post'' states: "There's no question Maduro had moles inside the murky conspiracy&nbsp;... Yet Maduro's government also alleges that Operation Gideon amounted to a genuine attempt to kill him."<ref name= WaPo19July2020/> The ''Post'' article also stated that "a senior U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity" said: 'The situation of Franklin Durán is puzzling' and 'creates a series of questions about what the regime knew and when they knew it'."<ref name= WaPo19July2020/><br />* ''The Wall Street Journal'' wrote that: "The ease with which Venezuela put down the uprising has stoked speculation that the mission was a false-flag operation organized by Caracas ... "<ref name=WSJ3Sep2020/> <br />* The Associated Press mentions that court filings by Alcalá "raise fresh questions about what the Trump administration knew ... " <ref name=AssociatedPress2022/> }}

Maduro's Attorney General [[Tarek William Saab]] announced that 25,000 national troops were mobilized<ref name="Sky2uscitizenscaptured">{{Cite web|title=Venezuela: Two US citizens held after failed coup attempt are named|url=https://news.sky.com/story/venezuela-two-us-citizens-held-after-failed-coup-attempt-are-named-11983259|website=Sky News|language=en|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref> in a Venezuelan military mission named "Bolivarian Shield" ([[Spanish language|Spanish]]: Escudo Bolivariano) to protect the country from similar attempts.<ref name="EClosabiamaduro" /> Saab requested that the [[Supreme Tribunal of Justice (Venezuela)|Supreme Tribunal of Justice]] declare Guaidó's political party, [[Popular Will]], a terrorist group due to the attempted sea incursion.<ref name="AgenceFrancePresse2020">{{Cite news|title=Venezuela attorney general seeks to declare Guaido party 'terrorist organization'|url=https://news.yahoo.com/venezuela-attorney-general-seeks-declare-guaido-party-terrorist-044310077.html|date=26 May 2020|agency=[[Agence France-Presse]]|language=en-US|access-date=28 May 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200610190543/https://news.yahoo.com/venezuela-attorney-general-seeks-declare-guaido-party-terrorist-044310077.html |archive-date=10 June 2020}}</ref> Guaidó responded to the charges, stating that Maduro defended "irregular groups" like the [[National Liberation Army (Colombia)|National Liberation Army]] and the [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia]].<ref name="AgenceFrancePresse2020" />"

The Venezuelan Operational Zone of Integral Defense (Zodi) of La Guaira announced that [[Russian Special Operations Forces]] were assisting Venezuelan soldiers with surveillance from [[unmanned aerial vehicle]]s, but it was determined that the equipment could not be operated in the region. The announcement was later deleted.<ref name="ECrus">{{cite news |last1=León |first1=Ibis |title=Agentes rusos rastrean a implicados en 'Operación Gedeón' en Carayaca |language=es|trans-title=Russian agents track down those implicated in "Operation Gideon" in Carayaca|url=https://efectococuyo.com/politica/agentes-rusos-rastrean-a-implicados-en-operacion-gedeon-en-carayaca/ |access-date=8 May 2020 |work=[[Efecto Cocuyo]] |quote = 'El grupo ruso operaría equipos aéreos no tripulados, por lo que el Jefe de la División de Drones del Comando de Defensa Aeroespacial Integral (Codal) y el equipo de operadores de la Federación Rusa realizaron una inspección a las instalaciones del Aeropuerto de Maiquetía donde hicieron una evaluación técnica la cual arrojó que no se pueden operar estos equipos desde aquí porque existen obstáculos', refiere el artículo citando información de la cuenta de la Zona Operativa de Defensa Integral (Zodi) de La Guaira. Sin embargo, los tuits citados fueron borrados de la cuenta y no se encuentran disponibles este viernes 8 de mayo.|date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="ZODI">{{Cite news|last=Kinosian |first= Sarah |date=8 May 2020|title=Russian troops to help Venezuela search for members of failed incursion: report|work=[[Reuters]]|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security-russia/russian-troops-to-help-venezuela-search-for-members-of-failed-incursion-report-idUSKBN22K2LZ|access-date=9 May 2020}}</ref>

Nieto, one of the organizers of the operation, said on 7 May that the events were only an "advanced tactical [[reconnaissance]]" and that CARIVE had 3,000 troops.<ref>{{Cite news|title=El día 'D' y la hora 'H' no ha llegado, Javier Nieto Quintero sobre 'Operación Gedeón'|language=es| trans-title=Javier Nieto Quintero on 'Operation Gideon': D Day and H Hour have not arrived |url=https://efectococuyo.com/politica/el-dia-d-y-la-hora-h-no-ha-llegado-javier-nieto-quintero-sobre-operacion-gedeon/|last=Leon|first=Ibis|date=7 May 2020|work=[[Efecto Cocuyo]]}}</ref>

=== Indictments and arrests ===
[[File:Operación Gedeón 2020 - arrests.png|thumb|upright=1.6|Detainees in prone position in custody of Venezuelan authorities]]

As of 21 May 2020 66 arrests took place and 99 arrests warrants had been issued, 63 of which remained outstanding.{{failed verification|date=September 2024}}<ref name="HRW-under-attack" />

Following 4 May, more individuals were arrested further inland with caches of weapons, ammunition, communication devices and [[Technical (vehicle)|technical]] pickup trucks with mounted machine guns.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020"/> On 4 May, Maduro said Venezuelan forces had detained 13 "mercenaries", including two Americans working with Goudreau: Berry and Denman.<ref name="AP-2US">{{cite news |title=Venezuela: 2 US 'mercenaries' among those nabbed after raid |url=https://apnews.com/fb3b0e84b1d58cb876fd38c7a9493fd5 |last1=Smith |first1=Scott |last2=Goodman |first2=Joshua|access-date=10 May 2020 |work=[[Associated Press]] |date=4 May 2020 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Wapo-Herrero" /> Goudreau said that eight of his soldiers had been captured on 4 May, the two Americans and six Venezuelans, and that an unknown number had been captured on 3 May.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Venezuela claims to have captured two Americans involved in failed invasion|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/05/americas/venezuela-maduro-americans-failed-invasion-intl/index.html|first=Claudia |last=Dominguez|date=5 May 2020 |publisher=CNN|access-date=5 May 2020}}</ref>

Maduro stated that "dozens" of "mercenaries" had been captured on 5 May.<ref name="ajAmericanscaptured">{{Cite web |title=Venezuela's Maduro: Americans captured in failed coup plot |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/05/venezuela-americans-nabbed-failed-coup-plot-200505025057889.html |access-date=5 May 2020 |website=Al Jazeera}}</ref> Another three individuals were arrested on 6 May.<ref name="PadrinoTweet" /> Adolfo Baduel, son of former Chávez Defense Minister, [[Raúl Baduel]], was among the detainees and said that the two arrested Americans were linked to the Trump administration.<ref name="BBCMundo" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Hija del general Baduel denuncia que desconocen el paradero de su hermano|trans-title=Daughter of general Baduel denounces that the whereabouts of her brother are unknown|url=https://elpitazo.net/politica/hija-del-general-baduel-denuncia-que-desconocen-el-paradero-de-su-hermano/|date=5 May 2020|website=El Pitazo|language=es|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref> By 6 May, the Defense Minister announced an additional three arrests via his Twitter account, publishing a photo of the purported detainees with [[Pixelization|pixelated]] faces on their knees with their wrists [[zip tie|zip-tied]] together without disclosing the names or any other additional details regarding the accused.<ref name="PadrinoTweet" />

Nicolás Maduro held a virtual press conference that day broadcast on state television in which he presented portions of Denman's interrogation,<ref name="BBCMundo" /><ref name="Reuters6May" /> described by Neuman as a "propaganda-style interrogation".{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} In the video, Denman states that his instructions were to seize an airport and fly Maduro to the United States, which Maduro cited as proof that the orders came directly from [[President of the United States|United States President]] [[Donald Trump]]. The video shows Denman answering questions that were asked in English, also indicating that he was hired through Goudreau and that they trained 50 combatants in Colombia in January 2020.<ref name="Reuters6May" /> Neumann wrote that, when asked "Who commands [Goudreau]?", Denman rolled his eyes when answering – a gesture that "seemed intended to contradict his words" when he replied it was Trump.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} Mattos, the Navy [[SEAL]] who had visited the rebel training camps in Colombia but was not involved in the operation, made the same observation, noting that it may have been a covert signal, and that "special operation soldiers are trained to find creative ways to discredit any propaganda videos they are forced to make if captured by the enemy" and that the odd eye movement was "a clear sign from Luke that he is being forced".<ref name="Riley-Smith2020" /> Berry was also subject to interrogation which was videotaped and presented in parts on state television on 7 May, during a press release presented by the [[Jorge Rodríguez (Venezuelan politician)|Jorge Rodríguez]].<ref name="WAPO-Maduro-Denman-PR">{{cite web |date=6 May 2020 |title=Maduro presents video confession by captured American |trans-title=Venezuela: Pres. Maduro announces the arrest of 4 new terrorists |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/maduro-presents-video-confession-by-captured-american/2020/05/06/4fdc08d4-8fdf-11ea-a9c0-73b93422d691_story.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=16 May 2020 |language=es |via=[[YouTube]] |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Phillips |first=Tom |date=7 May 2020 |title=US mercenary says group plotted to seize Venezuela's presidential palace |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/07/venezuela-us-mercenary-nicolas-maduro |website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref>

An additional interrogation video depicting Denman in an orange jumpsuit was aired on state television on 18 May 2020.<ref name="Maduradas-Denman2">{{Cite web |date=18 May 2020 |title=¡Le Contamos! Divulgan testimonio del estadounidense Luke Denman sobre el objetivo de la 'Operación Gedeón': Entrenar venezolanos, venir acá y poner a Maduro en un avión (+Video) |trans-title=We tell you! They release testimony from American Luke Denman about the objective of 'Operation Gideon': Train Venezuelans, come here and put Maduro on a plane (+Video) |url=https://maduradas.com/le-contamos-divulgan-testimonio-del-estadounidense-luke-denman-objetivo-la-operacion-gedeon-entrenar-venezolanos-venir-aca-poner-maduro-avion-video/ |access-date=18 May 2020 |website=Maduradas |language=es}}</ref> In the video, Denman indicates that his objective in embarking on the operation, as relayed by Goudreau, was to arrive in Colombia to train Venezuelans, accompany them to Venezuela for the landing, and once the Venezuelan dissidents' objectives had been achieved, "put Maduro on a plane", and provide support at the airport in order that humanitarian aid could arrive.<ref name="Maduradas-Denman2" />

Durán, his brother and seven other individuals were arrested in Venezuela on 24 May 2020.<ref name="AssociatedPress20211" /> Durán faced charges of arms trafficking, foreign conspiracy, rebellion, terrorism and treason.<ref name="AssociatedPress2021">{{Cite web |date=20 April 2021 |title=Jailed suspect in anti-Maduro plot blames Colombia, Guaido |url=https://apnews.com/article/yacsy-alvarez-anti-maduro-plot-221bb4d245603ff192b8c207389546c6 |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[Associated Press]] |language=en}}</ref>

The Colombian government informed that on 2 September it had arrested four Venezuelans related to Operation Gedeon. [[Óscar Alberto Pérez|Óscar Pérez]] had denounced in 2017 that both Rayder Alexander Russo (alias "Pico") and Osman Alejandro Tabosky, both arrested by Colombian officials and the latter also accused as intellectual author of the [[2018 Caracas drone attack]], were "infiltrated agents" in the resistance movement against Maduro.<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 September 2020 |title=Detienen en Colombia a alias "Pico" y otros cabecillas de la Operación Gedeón |url=https://talcualdigital.com/detienen-en-colombia-a-alias-pico-y-otros-cabecillas-de-la-operacion-gedeon/ |access-date=17 February 2021 |website=[[Tal Cual]] |language=es}}</ref>

United States federal authorities opened an investigation on Goudreau for arms trafficking.<ref name="AP-Goudreau-investigation2">{{Cite web |last1=Goodman |first1=Joshua |last2=Smith |first2=Scott |last3=Lee |first3=Matthew |last4=Herschaft |first4=Randy |date=6 May 2020 |title=Sources: US investigating ex-Green Beret for Venezuela raid |url=https://apnews.com/038e966350a9d7e8ec7a38341f0efeac |access-date=11 May 2020 |website=Associated Press (Caracas, Washington, New York)}}</ref> On 30 July 2024, he was indicted and charged with shipping weapons to Colombia without the necessary export licenses,<ref>{{cite news |title= US veteran charged with arms smuggling over failed Maduro ouster plot |first= Luc |last= Cohen |work= Reuters |date= 31 July 2024 |access-date= 31 July 2024 |url= https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-detains-military-veteran-who-claimed-responsibility-plot-oust-maduro-2024-07-31/}}</ref> and thought to be a flight risk.<ref>{{cite news |title= After Maduro ouster failed, US veteran took steps to flee, prosecutors say |first= Luc |last= Cohen |work= Reuters |url= https://www.reuters.com/world/us/after-maduro-ouster-failed-us-veteran-took-steps-flee-prosecutors-say-2024-08-07/|date= 7 August 2024 |access-date= 7 August 2024}}</ref>

In the weeks following the apprehension of Luke Denman and Airan Berry, Denman's brother, an attorney, took on the task of advocating for the release of both.<ref name="MT-likely-believed">{{Cite web |last1=Altman |first1=Howard |last2=Rempfer |first2=Kyle |date=11 May 2020 |title=Family of ex-Green Beret captured in Venezuela says men likely believed they were trying to liberate the oppressed |url=https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/05/11/family-of-ex-green-beret-captured-in-venezuela-says-men-likely-believed-they-were-trying-to-liberate-the-oppressed/ |access-date=18 May 2020 |website=[[Military Times]]}}</ref><ref name="Donati2020">{{Cite news |last=Donati |first=Jessica |date=15 May 2020 |title=Ex-Green Beret Thought U.S. Supported Failed Venezuela Raid, Family Says |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/ex-green-beret-thought-u-s-supported-failed-venezuela-raid-family-says-11589540401 |access-date=17 May 2020 |id={{ProQuest|2402946776}}}}</ref>

=== Criminal charges, extradition requests and sentences ===
Maduro's Attorney General, Saab, announced on 8 May<ref name="HRW-under-attack" /> that Denman and Berry would face charges for terrorism, conspiracy, "illicit trafficking of weapons of war" and "(criminal) association" – charges which carry a maximum prison sentence of 25 to 30 years.<ref>{{Cite news|date=8 May 2020|title=Venezuela charges two ex-US soldiers with 'terrorism, conspiracy'|work=[[Al Jazeera English|Al Jazeera]]|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/05/venezuela-charges-soldiers-terrorism-conspiracy-200509054632452.html|access-date=9 May 2020}}</ref> In addition, his office issued arrest warrants for Goudreau, Rendón, and Vergara for their role in the "design, financing, and execution" of the foiled plot.<ref name="infobae-regime-charged" /><ref name="Reuters-extradition">{{Cite web |last1=Sequera |first1=Vivian |last2=Cohen |first2=Luc |date=8 May 2020 |title=Venezuela's top prosecutor requests extradition of U.S. veteran accused in plot |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security/venezuelas-top-prosecutor-requests-extradition-of-u-s-veteran-accused-in-plot-idUSKBN22K29O |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508204512/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security/venezuelas-top-prosecutor-requests-extradition-of-u-s-veteran-accused-in-plot-idUSKBN22K29O |archive-date=8 May 2020 |access-date=27 September 2023 |website=Reuters}}</ref> After Denman and Berry admitted to "conspiracy, association (to commit crimes), illicit trafficking of war weapons and terrorism" a Venezuelan court sentenced both on 6 August 2020 to 20 years in prison.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dn.pt/mundo/20-anos-de-prisao-para-dois-ex-militares-dos-eua-envolvidos-em-invasao-falhada-da-venezuela-12506499.html|title=Venezuela condena a 20 anos dois ex-militares dos EUA envolvidos em 'invasão' falhada|date=8 August 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.france24.com/en/20200808-venezuela-jails-two-americans-over-failed-invasion|title=Venezuela jails two Americans over failed 'invasion' |agency= AFP |publisher= France24.com|date=8 August 2020 |access-date= 15 September 2023}}</ref>

Saab announced on 15 May 2020 an arrest warrant against [[Popular Will]] politician [[Yon Goicoechea]]. Goicoechea rejected the accusations of any involvement with Operation Gideon, and accused Maduro's administration of paying and leading the uprising attempt to victimize itself and "persecute political dissent".<ref name="HRW-under-attack" />

On 16 May 2020, according to a press release published by the [[Supreme Tribunal of Justice (Venezuela)|Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela]], several trial courts [[subject-matter jurisdiction|dedicated]] to [[terrorism]]-related crimes ordered that some 40 individuals alleged to have participated in the raid be remanded to [[preventive detention]].<ref name="Pitazo-tribunales-privan">{{Cite web|url=https://elpitazo.net/gran-caracas/operacion-gedeon-tribunales-privan-de-libertad-a-josnar-baduel-y-a-capitan-sequea/|title=Operación Gedeón: tribunales privan de libertad a Josnar Baduel y a capitán Sequea|date=16 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|language=es|trans-title=Operation Gideon: courts order confinement of Josnar Baduel and Captain Sequea}}</ref><ref name="EFE-Justicia-ve-dicta">{{Cite web|url=https://es.finance.yahoo.com/noticias/justicia-venezolana-dicta-prisi%C3%B3n-preventiva-174006406.html|title=La Justicia venezolana dicta prisión preventiva a 40 personas por ataque fallido|date=16 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|website=[[EFE]]|language=es|trans-title=Venezuelan court orders preventive detention to 40 individuals for failed attack|via=Yahoo Finanzas (Yahoo Finance in Spanish)}}</ref> Antonio Sequea Torres was also in pretrial confinement and charged with commission of aggravated [[first-degree murder|intentional homicide]] in connection with his alleged attempt to [[magnicide|assassinate]] Maduro.<ref name="Pitazo-tribunales-privan" /><ref name="EFE-Justicia-ve-dicta" /> The Supreme Tribunal of Justice also indicated that most of those involved in the operation are alleged to have committed the crimes of [[treason]], [[rebellion]], [[arms trafficking]], [[criminal conspiracy]], and colluding with a foreign government.<ref name="Pitazo-tribunales-privan" /> The mother of one of the accused, interviewed by Venezuelan newspaper ''[[El Pitazo]],'' demanded assurance that her son was alive after receiving a phone call from her son requesting his brother's telephone number "so that they would stop [[torture|torturing]] him".<ref name="Pitazo-tribunales-privan" />

According to Berry's videotaped statement, Antonio Sequea Torres and the drug trafficker Elkin Javier López, better known as ''Doble Rueda'' [{{translation|''Two-Wheeled''}}], also referred to as ''la silla'' [{{Translation|''the chair''}}] – met multiple times during the planning period of the operation to coordinate logistics.<ref name="Tiempo-Ruedas-extradition">{{cite web|title=Señalado por Maduro deapoyar golpe busca acelerar su envío a EE. UU. |url= https://www.eltiempo.com/justicia/investigacion/elkin-lopez-senalado-por-nicolas-maduro-pidio-extradicion-expres-a-estados-unidos-493014 |website=[[El Tiempo (Colombia)|El Tiempo]] |language=es|trans-title=Individual identified by Maduro as supporting the coup seeks to speed up being sent to the United States|date=8 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="Nacional-JRodrig-Goicoechea">{{Cite web|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/jorge-rodriguez-acuso-a-goicoechea-de-participar-en-la-operacion-gedeon/|title=Jorge Rodríguez acusó a Goicoechea de participar en la Operación Gedeón|date=18 May 2020|access-date=18 May 2020|website=[[El Nacional (Venezuela)]]}}</ref> The estate of López Torres in the Colombian Guajira is alleged to be the point of departure for the two boats involved in the raid.<ref name="Tiempo-Ruedas-extradition" /><ref name="Nacional-JRodrig-Goicoechea" /> The [[Valledupar]]-based López Torres was arrested in December 2019 and his extradition was requested by the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eltiempo.com/unidad-investigativa/estados-unidos-pide-extradicion-del-capo-alias-la-silla-443628|title=EE. UU. pide extradición inmediata del señalado capo alias 'La silla'|date=14 December 2019|website=[[El Tiempo (Colombia)]]|language=es|trans-title=United States requests immediate extradition of crime boss known as 'the chair'}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eltiempo.com/unidad-investigativa/quien-es-la-silla-el-supuesto-capo-al-que-duque-ordeno-perseguir-405780|title=¿Quién es 'la Silla', el supuesto capo al que Duque ordenó perseguir?|date=28 August 2019|website=[[El Tiempo (Colombia)]]|language=es|trans-title=Who is 'the Chair', the alleged crime boss that Duque ordered be pursued?}}</ref>

In May 2021, three Venezuelans were sentenced in Colombia to six years in prison for their relation to the operation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodman |first=Joshua |date= 19 May 2021 |title=Venezuelans tied to anti-Maduro plot sentenced to 6 years |work=[[Associated Press]] |url=https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-6459b0de221a02462e42d6a8519003ba |access-date=10 June 2021}}</ref>

=== Investigation of interception and deaths===
{{unbalanced section|date= December 2023|reason= information about FAES intervention and evidence about deaths has been removed}}
Statements made to the ''Miami Herald'' by Cacique, who was involved in the operation, information about the exact landing was sold to Maduro intelligence a few days before the attempted landing. [[National Assembly (Venezuela)|National Assembly]] deputy [[Wilmer Azuaje]] – president of the Venezuelan Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights<ref name="CPITalCual" /> and Guaidó's coordinator for expanding complaints of human rights violations<ref name="CPIElPitazo"/> – alleges that Sequea Torres "was the military infiltrator" who provided the information.<ref name= InfobaeWilmer/>

According to the Maduro administration, authorities awaiting the boat's arrival were fired upon by occupants of the first boat, led by Colina.<ref name="BBCPiglets" /><ref name="Delgado2020" /><ref name="Wapo-Herrero" /> In a press conference on the morning of 3 May, [[Diosdado Cabello]] reported that the early-morning exchange resulted in at least eight deaths and two arrests, indicating that it was unknown whether others drowned or swam away.<ref name="skybotchedplot" /><ref name="ElComercio-pe">{{Cite news |date=3 May 2020 |title=Venezuela informa de ocho muertos y dos detenidos por invasión marítima frustrada en el estado de Vargas |newspaper=El Comercio |url=https://elcomercio.pe/mundo/venezuela/venezuela-diosdado-cabello-informa-de-ocho-fallecidos-y-dos-detenidos-por-invasion-maritima-frustrada-en-el-estado-de-vargas-la-guaira-macuto-noticia/ |url-status=live |access-date=30 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200505101547/https://elcomercio.pe/mundo/venezuela/venezuela-diosdado-cabello-informa-de-ocho-fallecidos-y-dos-detenidos-por-invasion-maritima-frustrada-en-el-estado-de-vargas-la-guaira-macuto-noticia/ |archive-date=5 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="BBC-Ve-accuses">{{Cite news |date=3 May 2020 |title=Venezuela accuses Colombia of sea invasion |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-52525209 |url-status=live |access-date=5 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504004135/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-52525209 |archive-date=4 May 2020}}</ref> Venezuelan Defense Minister [[Vladimir Padrino López]] later said that the first boat had been sunk by the navy and the military sent ships to look for survivors.<ref name="BBC-Ve-accuses" /> According to Venezuelan Information Minister [[Jorge Rodríguez (Venezuelan politician)|Jorge Rodríguez]], the second boat had changed course after eight occupants of the first boat were killed in a 45-minute shootout with Venezuelan armed forces.<ref name="Otis2020" />

Reporters from ''The Miami Herald'' and [[McClatchy DC]] stated that "loyalists of Venezuela leader Nicolás Maduro infiltrated the ranks of the coup plotters, leading to a massacre of some invaders".<ref name="Hall2021" /><ref name="Delgado2020" /> Barráez and Azuaje – the latter of which investigated the incident in connection with a human rights complaint submitted to the [[International Criminal Court]] (ICC) – accused Venezuelan authorities of torturing and executing the six men in the first boat, including Colina.<ref name= "Delgado2020" /><ref name= Emboscada>{{cite news |first= Sebastiana |last= Barráez |date= 2 August 2020 |url= https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/08/02/paso-a-paso-como-se-gesto-la-operacion-gedeon-que-termino-con-la-emboscada-de-militares-venezolanos/ |work= [[Infobae]] |language= es |trans-title= Step by step, how Operation Gideon was created and ended with the ambush of the Venezuelan military |access-date= 4 October 2023 |title= Paso a paso, cómo se gestó la Operación Gedeón que terminó con la emboscada de militares venezolanos |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200803010858/https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/08/02/paso-a-paso-como-se-gesto-la-operacion-gedeon-que-termino-con-la-emboscada-de-militares-venezolanos/ |archive-date= 3 August 2020 }}</ref> Barráez wrote that when Sequea took "control of the camps" after Alcalá's arrest, he "led fifty soldiers into an ambush" and that he facilitated identification to FAES by forcing all of the other men to shave their heads except his brother-in-law, the Americans, and "his most trusted men".<ref name=LasPruebas>{{cite news |title= Las pruebas que dejan al descubierto lo que el Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia y Diosdado Cabello pretenden ocultar con la Operación Gedeón |language= es |trans-title= The evidence that reveals what the Bolivarian Intelligence Service and Diosdado Cabello intend to hide with Operation Gedeón |first= Sebastiana |last= Barráez |work= Infobae |date= 11 October 2020|url= https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/10/11/las-pruebas-que-dejan-al-descubierto-lo-que-el-servicio-bolivariano-de-inteligencia-y-diosdado-cabello-pretenden-ocultar-con-la-operacion-gedeon/ |access-date= 17 September 2023}}</ref> Azuaje argued the deaths were "extrajudicial executions", said that "everything was rigged" and referred to the event as the "Macuto massacre" comparing it to the 2018 [[El Junquito raid]], in which [[Óscar Alberto Pérez|Óscar Pérez]] and his men were killed after reportedly offering to surrender.<ref name="CPITalCual" /><ref name="Trillo" /><ref name="CPILaRazon" /> According to Rendón, the operation was compromised for months and intelligence gathered by the Maduro government allowed the Venezuelan armed forces to set the group up for an ambush, to create a "montage" of the events.<ref name=NoHubo>{{Cite web|title=Venezuela: 'No hubo misión militar fallida, sí un montaje del régimen'|trans-title=Venezuela: "There was no failed military mission, but there was a regime set-up" |url=https://www.diariolasamericas.com/america-latina/jj-rendon-no-hubo-accion-militar-si-montaje-del-regimen--n4198737|website=[[Diario las Américas]]|date=8 May 2020 |language=es|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref> Cacique alleged that "the only witnesses to the execution[s]" were held under "extreme security measures".<ref name= Delgado2020/>

The report submitted to the ICC in October 2020 included forensic photographs reportedly taken by the Venezuelan forensic police, [[Cuerpo de Investigaciones Científicas, Penales y Criminalísticas|CICPC]]; it argues that there was not an armed confrontation but that the insurgents had been set up, tortured and extrajudicially executed.<ref name="Delgado2020" /><ref name="CPILaRazon">{{Cite web |date=18 October 2020 |title=Las fotos que revelan que la Operación Gedeón fue una masacre orquestada por el régimen chavista |trans-title= The photos that reveal that Operation Gedeón was a massacre orchestrated by the Chavista regime|url=https://www.larazon.es/internacional/20201018/muugqi4atza5hijbui524ucefm.html |access-date=17 February 2021 |website=[[La Razón (Madrid)|La Razón]] |language=es}}</ref><ref name="CPITalCual">{{cite news |title= CPI notificó rápido haber recibido informe de Operación Gedeón, dice Wilmer Azuaje |trans-title= CPI quickly notified having received a report on Operation Gedeón, says Wilmer Azuaje|url= https://talcualdigital.com/wilmer-azuaje-cpi-notifico-rapidamente-haber-recibido-informe-de-operacion-gedeon/ |date= 15 October 2020 |access-date= 12 September 2023 |work= [[Tal Cual]] |language=es}}</ref><ref name="Trillo">{{cite news |first = Manuel |last= Trillo |date= 21 September 2020 |url= https://www.abc.es/internacional/abci-presentan-pruebas-torturas-y-asesinatos-operacion-gedeon-venezuela-202009211757_noticia.html |work= [[ABC (newspaper)|ABC (Spain)]]|title= Presentan pruebas de torturas y ejecuciones a miembros de la 'operación Gedeón' de Venezuela |trans-title= Evidence of torture and executions of members of Venezuela's 'Operation Gideon' presented |access-date= 12 September 2023 |language=es}}</ref> Azuaje stated that the original photos from the operation,<ref name="CPILaRazon" /> and information about the bodies, came from anonymous [[Chavismo|chavista]] officials.<ref name="InfobaeOperacion">{{cite web |date=15 October 2020 |title=Operación Gedeón: las fotos presentadas en La Haya que prueban las ejecuciones extrajudiciales de la dictadura de Maduro |trans-title=Operation Gideon: the photos presented in The Hague that prove the extrajudicial executions of the Maduro dictatorship |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/10/14/operacion-gedeon-las-fotos-presentadas-en-la-haya-que-prueban-las-ejecuciones-extrajudiciales-de-la-dictadura-de-maduro/ |access-date=17 September 2023 |work=Infobae |language=es}} Contains a link to the full report.</ref> The opposition official also submitted the report to the Human Rights Commission of the [[European Parliament]].<ref name="CPIElPitazo">{{Cite web |date=14 October 2020 |title=Azuaje: 'Denunciamos ante el Parlamento Europeo la masacre de Macuto' |trans-title= Azuaje: 'We denounce the Macuto massacre before the European Parliament' |url=https://elpitazo.net/politica/azuaje-denunciamos-ante-el-parlamento-europeo-la-masacre-de-macuto/ |access-date=17 February 2021 |website=[[El Pitazo]] |language=es}}</ref> The report identifies the six former military<ref name="Provea">{{cite web | first1= Rodolfo |last1= Montes de Oca |first2= Alberto |last2= Barrera Tyszka|title= Sospechas habituales |language= es |trans-title= Common suspicions|url= https://provea.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Sospechosos-Habituales.pdf |publisher= [[PROVEA]] |date= 2022 | access-date= 16 September 2023 |page= 95}}</ref> dead as Colina along with César Andrés Perales Sequea, Anderson Smith Araque Portilla, Jean Carlo Castro Gutiérrez, Fabián Rodríguez Salazar, and José Roberto Abreu Facúndez.<ref name="InfobaeWilmer" /> Maduro stated he ordered all insurgents be taken alive.<ref name="MaduroAcusa" />

=== Goudreau lawsuit ===
In the final days of April 2020, Rendón was contacted by Silvercorp's legal advisors demanding a payment of US$1.45 million; ''The Washington Post'' wrote that Guaidó's officials reacted to the demands in fear, believing they were being blackmailed with the threat of the canceled plans being revealed to the public.<ref name="wapomiamicondo" /> Goudreau said that the Trump administration had knowledge of the operation and that the plotters held meetings in the [[Trump National Doral Miami|Trump Doral]] west of Miami. Goudreau sued Rendón in October 2020 for a $1.4 million breach of contract.<ref name="TheMiamiHerald2020"/> According to Neuman, Goudreau's lawsuit says "that he met three times with an obscure Trump official to discuss obtaining a license to export weapons", and that he believed "the plan had U.S. government approval" and Guaidó officials never told him to end his operation.{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}<!--

Commented out Analysis section removed to [[Talk:Operation Gideon (2020)/Analysis]]. -->

==Reactions==
=== Domestic ===
The event was described as a propaganda coup<ref name="AssociatedPress2022">{{Cite web |date=29 January 2022 |title=Alleged Maduro co-conspirator says CIA knew about coup plans |url=https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-miami-united-states-united-states-government-cia-7b0dba046661501c859e1358f591a839 |access-date=14 June 2023 |website=[[Associated Press]] |language=en}}</ref> and "public relations victory" for the Maduro administration that negatively affected public opinion of Guaidó's administration.<ref name="BBCMundo-Guaido-leadership" />{{sfn|Weeks|Allison|2022|p=5}}

==== Maduro administration ====
Maduro stated that plans included his possible assassination.<ref name=MaduroAcusa>{{Cite web |date=5 May 2020 |title= Maduro acusa a la DEA de contratar a "narcos" en el golpe frustrado |url=https://www.abc.es/internacional/abci-maduro-acusa-contratar-narcos-golpe-frustrado-202005051647_noticia.html |access-date=6 October 2023 |website=[[ABC (Spain)]] |language=es|trans-title= Maduro accuses the DEA of hiring 'narcos' in the thwarted coup}}</ref>

The Maduro administration accused the United States and Colombian governments of masterminding the attack, which both denied.<ref name="Sky2uscitizenscaptured" /><ref name="reutersTrumpdenies2">{{cite news|author=Steve Holland|date=5 May 2020|title=Trump denies U.S. role in what Venezuela says was 'mercenary' incursion|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security-trump/trump-denies-u-s-role-in-what-venezuela-says-was-mercenary-incursion-idUSKBN22H1XL}}</ref> Goudreau has also denied receiving any help for his operation from US and Colombian authorities.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Venezuela arrests two US 'mercenaries' after alleged raid to capture Maduro|url=https://www.france24.com/en/20200505-venezuela-arrests-two-us-mercenaries-after-beach-raid|date=5 May 2020|website=France 24|access-date=6 May 2020}}</ref> Maduro's Vice President [[Delcy Rodríguez]] called Goudreau "a supremacist fanatic" and warned that "the Venezuelan women are waiting for you, for free, but with deep homeland passion."<ref>{{Cite news|date=4 May 2020|title=Las venezolanas lo esperamos gratis con profunda pasión patria»: el mensaje de Delcy Rodríguez a Jordan Goudreau|language=es|trans-title=The women of Venezuela await you with deep patriotic devotion – Delcy Rodríguez's message to Jordan Goudreau|work=Alberto News|url=https://albertonews.com/politica/las-mujeres-venezolanas-lo-esperamos-con-profunda-pasion-patria-el-mensaje-de-delcy-rodriguez-a-jordan-goudreau/|access-date=10 May 2020}}</ref>

Maduro's Foreign Minister Arreaza criticized foreign governments and international organizations for their "deafening silence in the face of the mercenary aggression against Venezuela" and said that "the same people who always condemn us immediately based on biased or false information, today remain silent in the face of such a serious and full case of evidence." He added that "all those involved in the armed aggression against Venezuela confess that they trained in Colombia, with the knowledge of the Bogotá government and the financing of drug traffickers from that country."<ref>{{Cite news|date=8 May 2020|title=Arreaza: Silencio de gobiernos ante agresiones contra Venezuela es complicidad|language=es|trans-title=Arreaza: The silence of governments in the face of attacks against Venezuela is complicity|work=[[El Universal (Venezuela)]]|agency=AVN|url=https://www.eluniversal.com/politica/69815/arreza-silencio-de-gobiernos-ante-agresiones-contra-venezuela-es-complicidad|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref>

====Guaidó administration and opposition ====
[[File:J.J. Rendón.jpg|thumb|Guaidó's General Strategist [[J. J. Rendón]], who resigned due to his interactions with Silvercorp|alt=]]

Guaidó accused the Maduro administration of "trying to create a state of apparent confusion, an effort to hide what's happening in Venezuela", citing recent events like the gasoline shortages, the [[Guanare prison riot]], a violent gang battle in Caracas, and the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Venezuela]].<ref name="reutersTrumpdenies2" /> Guaidó also demanded that the human rights of the detainees be respected.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Sequera|first=Vivian|date=6 May 2020|title=Venezuelan authorities detain U.S. citizens allegedly involved in incursion|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security-idUSKBN22G2O0|access-date=6 May 2020}}</ref> [[Iván Simonovis]], security and intelligence commissioner for the Guaidó administration, stated that the events in Macuto would be used by the Maduro government as a pretext to harass opponents and intensify repression, saying that Guaidó's administration would investigate the events and clarify its details.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Según Iván Simonovis lo ocurrido en Macuto fue para profundizar la represión|trans-title=According to Ivan Simonovis, what happened in Macuto was for the purpose of increasing repression|url=https://elpitazo.net/politica/segun-ivan-simonovis-lo-ocurrido-en-macuto-fue-para-profundizar-la-represion/|date=3 May 2020|website=[[El Pitazo]]|language=es|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref>

The opposition political party [[Justice First]] demanded that Guaidó immediately dismiss the officials involved with the plot and charged that they "used his government's name for individual purposes".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Primero Justicia pide destitución de involucrados en complot|url=https://www.diariolasamericas.com/primero-justicia-pide-destitucion-involucrados-complot-n4198730|website=[[Diario las Américas]]|language=es|trans-title=Justice First calls for dismissal of those involved in plot|access-date=12 May 2020}}</ref> [[Julio Borges]], Guaidó's foreign minister, called for the dismissal of all officials related to the plot, stating "we worry that energies are put into the creation of a bureaucratic caste and not into political change." Rendon and Vergara resigned on 11 May, with Guaidó thanking the two for "dedication and commitment to Venezuela".<ref name="ReutersResign">{{cite news|date=11 May 2020|title=Venezuelan opposition advisers resign after failed operation to oust Maduro|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security/venezuelan-opposition-advisers-resign-after-failed-operation-to-oust-maduro-idUSKBN22N2BU|access-date=11 May 2020}}</ref> Important members of López's Popular Will party resigned from their positions in the month following the incident, saying that López's strong actions and policies hurt the efforts of the opposition in whole.<ref name="WSJ26Jun" />

==== NGOs ====
The human rights NGO [[PROVEA]] asked about the well-being of the people arrested in Macuto and in Chuao and indicated that [[Tarek William Saab]], and the [[Ombudsman]] appointed by Maduro, Alfredo Ruiz, would be responsible for possible [[forced disappearance]]s or torture of the detainees, while stressing that it would only support and promote peaceful and constitutional means that lead to the "restoration of democracy in the country".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Provea exige garantías a la integridad de detenidos en Macuto y Chuao|trans-title=[[PROVEA]] demands assurances of the wellbeing of those detained in Macuto and Chuao |url=https://runrun.es/noticias/406244/provea-exige-garantias-a-la-integridad-de-detenidos-en-macuto-y-chuao/|date=5 May 2020|website=[[Runrunes]]|language=es|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> Maduro accused PROVEA of being "financed by the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]]" and giving coverage to "terrorists" as a response, accusations that PROVEA rejected.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Provea responde a Maduro: Nadie nos va a desviar del camino|url=https://www.noticierodigital.com/2020/05/provea-responde-a-maduro-nadie-nos-va-a-desviar-del-camino/|language=es|trans-title=PROVEA responds to Maduro: Nobody is going to divert us from our path|work=Noticiero Digital|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref> [[Human Rights Watch]] criticized Maduro for alleging that PROVEA had connections to the United States [[Central Intelligence Agency]] after the organization called for due process of the captured individuals.<ref name="HRW-under-attack" /> Human Rights Watch wrote: "An international community that's closely watching what happens in Venezuela needs to send the message loud and clear: subjecting human rights defenders to politically motivated prosecution, detention or other abuses would be crossing a line for which those responsible will have to answer".<ref name="HRW-under-attack" />

The ''Futuro Presente'' Foundation was accused by Maduro's administration of financing the operation. ''Futuro Presente'' categorically rejected the accusations of the participation of the organization and any of its members, said they were being persecuted, asked for it to end, and said that it was based on "completely false and unfounded accusations".<ref>{{Cite web|title='Nunca he tenido trato con Jordan Goudreau', responde Yon Goicoechea|url=https://efectococuyo.com/politica/nunca-he-tenido-trato-por-ningun-medio-con-el-senor-jordan-goudreau-responde-yon-goicoechea/|last=Martínez|first=Deisy|date=21 May 2020|website=[[Efecto Cocuyo]]|language=es|access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref>

=== International ===

*{{flag|Colombia}}: The Colombian government rejected the accusations, calling them an attempt by the "dictatorial regime of [[Nicolás Maduro]]" to divert attention from problems in the country.<ref>{{Cite news|date=4 May 2020|title=Venezuela says it foiled an incursion by 'mercenaries'|work=[[Agence France-Presse]]|url=https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/venezuela-says-it-foiled-incursion-mercenaries-doc-1qz10c2|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504171520/https://www.afp.com/en/news/15/venezuela-says-it-foiled-incursion-mercenaries-doc-1qz10c2|access-date=11 May 2020|archive-date=4 May 2020}}</ref> President Duque said that he did not sponsor invasions or tricks in response to the accusations and stated "I do things up front because I am a defender of democracy."<ref name="CNN-Duque-denies">{{Cite web |date=8 May 2020 |title=Iván Duque niega acusaciones del Gobierno de Maduro |trans-title=Iván Duque denies accusations of Maduro regime |url=https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/2020/05/08/alerta-colombia-ivan-duque-niega-acusaciones-del-gobierno-de-maduro/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200509103444/https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/2020/05/08/alerta-colombia-ivan-duque-niega-acusaciones-del-gobierno-de-maduro/ |archive-date=9 May 2020 |access-date=27 September 2023 |website=CNN en español |language=es}}</ref>
*{{Flag|Russia}}: The [[Russian Foreign Ministry]] said that United States' denial was "unconvincing" and pointed to earlier warnings made by the Trump administration that "all options" are on the table, including the possibility of military action. It also said that the actions of the mercenaries deserve "unequivocal and decisive condemnation".<ref>{{Cite news|date=6 May 2020|title=Russia weighs in on Donald Trump's 'unconvincing' denial of alleged Venezuelan plot|work=[[SBS World News]]|agency=[[Agence France-Presse]]|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/russia-weighs-in-on-donald-trump-s-unconvincing-denial-of-alleged-venezuelan-plot|access-date=6 May 2020}}</ref> 
**On 20 May 2020, Russia convoked a virtual open debate of the [[United Nations Security Council]] (UNSC) for the purpose of urging the members of the council to condemn the attack as a threat to peace in Venezuela and to security in the region.<ref name="AP-UN-urge-resume">{{Cite news|title=UN urges Venezuela's rival political leaders to resume talks|url=https://apnews.com/76b2c3f2afa14aaa6f661dc10c4ee11c|last=Lederer|first=Edith M.|date=20 May 2020|access-date=20 May 2020|work=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> The United States doubled down on its previous denials of any involvement in the operation, and accused the Maduro administration of using the event as a pretext to persecute political dissidents and distract from other problems in Venezuela. Russia reasserted its assessment that the statements by the United States government that it had no knowledge of the operation were dubious in light of the attackers' plans to fly their captives to the United States. Russia's U.N. ambassador, Dmitry Polyansky, asked how does the attack correlate with the "all options are on the table" messages.<ref name="AP-UN-urge-resume" />
*{{flag|United States}}: Various US officials (including President Trump) have denied the accusations made by the Maduro administration.<ref name="reutersTrumpdenies2" />
**President Trump said that the incident "has nothing to do with our government".<ref name="guardianTrumpdenies">{{Cite news|last=Daniels|first=Joe Parkin|date=5 May 2020|title=Donald Trump denies link to Venezuela armed raid by US citizens|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian |agency= Reuters |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/05/venezuela-donald-trump-denies-link-raid-us-citizens|access-date=6 May 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200505171201/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/05/venezuela-donald-trump-denies-link-raid-us-citizens |archive-date= 5 May 2020}}</ref><ref name="reutersTrumpdenies2" /> Speaking on [[Fox News]], Trump said "If I wanted to go into Venezuela, I wouldn't make a secret about it" and said that the operation would be called an "invasion" if he sends an army into Venezuela.<ref name=Riley-Smith2020>{{Cite news|last=Riley-Smith|first=Ben|date=8 May 2020|title=Donald Trump denies being behind bungled Venezuelan coup plot|work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/08/donald-trump-denies-behind-bungled-venezuelan-coup-plot/ |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200516132147/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/08/donald-trump-denies-behind-bungled-venezuelan-coup-plot/ |archive-date= 16 May 2020 |access-date= 11 September 2023}}</ref>
**Secretary of State [[Mike Pompeo]] said that there was no US government direct involvement in this operation and added: "[If] we'd have been involved, it would have gone differently." Regarding the detention of two Americans, Pompeo said that the US will use "every tool" available to secure the return of Americans if they are being held in Venezuela.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Spetalnick|first1=Matt|last2=Pamuk|first2=Humeyra|date=6 May 2020|title=U.S. will use 'every tool' to secure release if any Americans held in Venezuela: Pompeo|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-security-usa/us-will-use-every-tool-to-secure-release-if-any-americans-held-in-venezuela-pompeo-idUSKBN22I2DM|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref>
**Secretary of Defense [[Mark Esper]] told reporters at [[the Pentagon]] that "the United States government had nothing to do with what's happened in Venezuela in the last few days."<ref>{{Cite web|last=Sisk|first=Richard|date=6 May 2020|title=US Not Involved in Bizarre Venezuela Coup Attempt, SecDef Insists|website=Military|url=https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/05/06/us-not-involved-bizarre-venezuela-coup-attempt-secdef-insists.html|access-date=7 May 2020}}</ref>
**A State Department spokesperson said that the Maduro administration has been consistent in its use of misinformation to shift focus from its mismanagement of Venezuela. It also said that there was "little reason to believe anything that comes out of the former regime".<ref name="AP4May" />

=== Characterization ===
The Maduro administration described the operation as an attempted coup with the goal of assassinating Maduro,<ref name= WaPo6May>{{cite news |last1= DeYoung |first1= Karen |last2= Faiola |first2= Anthony |last3= Horton |first3= Alex|date= 6 May 2020 |title= U.S. denies role in alleged Venezuela raid |newspaper= The Washington Post |id= {{ProQuest|2398393743}} }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-04 |title=Opositores a Maduro piden por la vida de presos en "Operación Gedeón" |url=https://elestimulo.com/destacados/2020-05-04/opositores-a-maduro-piden-por-la-vida-de-presos-en-operacion-gedeon/ |access-date=2023-10-30 |website=elestimulo.com |language=es}}</ref> which was perpetrated by "terrorists" in a plot coordinated by Colombia and the United States.<ref name="reutersTrumpdenies2"/>{{sfn|Mijares|2022|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SuN4EAAAQBAJ&dq=Goudreau+Venezuela+Gideon&pg=PT196 234]}} Initially, Interior Minister Nestor Reverol called the event an attempted "maritime invasion" of the country, carried out by "terrorist mercenaries."<ref name=bellingcatI-Fiorella/> Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López later said the incident should not be characterized as an "invasion," opting instead to describe it as an "infiltration by sea" that was "a very well-planned military operation, prepared in foreign territory."<ref name=Barraez2020-not-invasion>{{cite web |last1=Barráez |first1=Sebastiana |title=Disidencias en el régimen de Maduro: Vladimir Padrino López dijo que no se puede calificar a la Operación Gedeón como 'una invasión |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2020/05/15/disidencias-en-el-regimen-de-maduro-vladimir-padrino-lopez-dijo-que-no-se-puede-calificar-a-la-operacion-gedeon-como-una-invasion/ |website=infobae |date=15 May 2020 |access-date=1 October 2023}}</ref>

Goudreau referred to the operation as a "daring amphibious raid" by "Venezuelans trying to restore their democracy",<ref name=AP4May/> labelling them "freedom fighters".<ref name=Otis2020/> He also said that he green-lit the operation because he thought it would spur further unrest against the Maduro government.<ref name="Forero2020" />

Guaidó supporters called it an ambush orchestrated and staged by Maduro;<ref name="Delgado2020" /><ref name="NoHubo" /> according to ''The Washington Post'', the Maduro administration stated that infiltration by its intelligence agents led to the ambush.<ref name="Wapo-Herrero" /> Guaidó and his supporters also characterized the event as a possible [[false flag]].<ref name="Bloombergcom2020"/><ref name= Delgado2020/><ref name= WSJ3Sep2020/> Colombian President Duque, described by ''The Wall Street Journal'' as an "ardent Maduro foe", mentioned speculation of a [[false flag]], saying the operation was "allegedly promoted and financed by the dictatorial regime of Nicolás Maduro".<ref name="WSJ3Sep2020">{{cite news |last=Vyas |first=Kejal |date=3 September 2020 |title=Colombia Arrests Venezuelans Tied to Failed Invasion; Charges are latest twist in the bizarre saga to overthrow strongman Nicolas Maduro in May |work=Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/colombia-arrests-venezuelans-tied-to-failed-invasion-11599175987 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200904033830/https://www.wsj.com/articles/colombia-arrests-venezuelans-tied-to-failed-invasion-11599175987 |archive-date=4 September 2020 |id={{ProQuest|2439717423}}}}</ref> The ''Wall Street Journal'' reported that Trump administration officials had stated that "it could have been a false flag organized by Mr. Maduro's regime to score propaganda points".<ref name= WSJ26Jun>{{cite news |first1= Kejal |last1= Vyas |first2= Juan |last2= Forero|title= Venezuelan Opposition Guru Led Planning to Topple Maduro |work=Wall Street Journal |url= https://www.wsj.com/articles/venezuelan-opposition-guru-led-planning-to-topple-maduro-11593163801 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210627123724mp_/https://www.wsj.com/articles/venezuelan-opposition-guru-led-planning-to-topple-maduro-11593163801 |archive-date= 27 June 2021 |date= 26 June 2020 |access-date= 17 September 2023 |id={{ProQuest|2417270697}} }}</ref> ''[[Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung]]'' wrote that the plot "sounds crazy and joins a series of other alleged coup attempts and assassinations whose backgrounds were so contradictory that they were dismissed as inventions for the purpose of propaganda", though notes that the efforts overall "were real", citing the interviews regarding the operation.<ref>{{Cite news |last= |last2= |last3= |first3= |date=2020-05-06 |title=Söldner-Invasion in Venezuela: Von langer Hand gescheitert |language=de |work=[[Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung]] |url=https://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/ausland/soeldner-invasion-in-venezuela-von-langer-hand-gescheitert-16757210.html |access-date=2023-10-20 |issn=0174-4909}}</ref> Conspiracy theories have arisen due to the lack of answers about key aspects of the operation.<ref name="Bloombergcom2020"/>

U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper referred to the event as "what's happened in Venezuela in the last few days," and a U.S. official familiar with the matter labeled the operation as poorly organized and the fighters as "soldiers of fortune."<ref name=Otis2020/>

Media sources, analysts and individuals used terms like ''murky''<ref name= Mind-blowing>{{cite news |first1= Rich |last1= Schapiro |first2= Emmanuelle |last2= Saliba|date= 8 May 2020 |url= https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/mind-blowing-story-ex-green-beret-who-tried-oust-venezuela-n1201981 |title= The 'mind-blowing' story of the ex-Green Beret who tried to oust Venezuela's Maduro |publisher= NBC News |access-date= 27 September 2023}}</ref><ref name= WaPo19July2020/> and ''bizarre''<ref name="bellingcatI-Fiorella"/><ref name= BBCPiglets/> to describe the plot and events. Sources varied between describing the anti-Maduro plot<ref name="AssociatedPress20210"/> as: an operation{{sfn|Bull|Rosales|2023|p=49}} referred to by its [[code name]] Gideon;{{sfn|Corrales|2020|pp=41–42}}{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}}{{sfn|Weeks|Allison|2022|p=5}}{{sfn|Mijares|2022|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SuN4EAAAQBAJ&dq=Goudreau+Venezuela+Gideon&pg=PT196 234]}}{{sfn|Harwood|2022}} a failed incursion, infiltration, insurrection, invasion or raid;{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc= Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}}{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}}{{sfn|Koh|2021|p=744}}{{sfn|DeFronzo|2021|pp=455–456}}{{sfn|Bull|Rosales|2023|p=49}} an [[assassination attempt]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 July 2021 |title=A Florida security company is entangled in the assassination of Haiti's president. How is that possible? |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/07/20/florida-security-company-is-entangled-assassination-haitis-president-how-is-that-possible/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Venezuela broadcasts video of captured US mercenary |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/5/6/venezuela-broadcasts-video-of-captured-us-mercenary |access-date=6 October 2023 |website=[[Al Jazeera English|Al Jazeera]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=7 May 2020 |title=Maduro says two captured American 'mercenaries' will be tried in Venezuela |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20200507-nicolas-maduro-juan-guaido-donald-trump-americans-mercenaries-invasion-luke-denman-airan-berry |access-date=6 October 2023 |website=[[France 24]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Colombia's Mercenary Industry is Behind the Haitian Coup |url=https://jacobin.com/2021/07/colombia-mercenary-industry-haitian-coup-assassination-president-jovenel-moise-right-wing-paramilitaries-retired-armed-forces |access-date=6 October 2023 |website=[[Jacobin (magazine)|Jacobin]] |language=en-US}}</ref> and an attempted landing,{{sfn|Corrales|2020|pp=41–42}} or [[Coup d'état|coup]].<ref name="TheMiamiHerald2020"/><ref name="Bloombergcom2020"/><ref name="Vox-Ridiculous2"/><ref name= BBCPiglets/> Some sources criticized the poor planning and execution,<ref name="NYMag-dumbest-aspects" /><ref name="WhyTweet">{{Cite web|url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/mercenaries-arrested-after-alleged-failed-coup-in-venezuela.html |title= Why Would You Tweet About Your Coup? |first= Sarah |last= Jones|date = 5 May 2020 |work = New York Magazine |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200506062419/https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/mercenaries-arrested-after-alleged-failed-coup-in-venezuela.html |archive-date= 6 May 2020}}</ref> and described the operation as more incompetent than the 1961 failed [[Bay of Pigs Invasion]] of Cuba,{{sfn|Harwood|2022}} with some referring to it as the "Bay of Piglets".<ref name="BBCPiglets" />{{sfn|Weeks|Allison|2022|p=5}} [[Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting]] writer Joshua Cho criticized the corporate media's coverage of the word ''mercenary'' and coverage overall as dismissive or misleading and biased in favor of [[regime change]].<ref name="FAIR">{{Cite web |last=Cho |first=Joshua |date=11 May 2020 |title=Corporate Media Don't Think Americans Paid to Invade Venezuela Count as Mercenaries |url=https://fair.org/home/corporate-media-dont-think-americans-paid-to-invade-venezuela-count-as-mercenaries/ |access-date=6 October 2023 |website=[[Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

Villa writes that Operation Gideon was an "attempt of some Venezuelan military and civilian dissidents (mainly exiled in Colombia) and three members of a US private security force to infiltrate Venezuela".{{sfn|Villa|2022|loc= sec. "Political dimension under Maduro government: expanding the autonomy of the armed forces"}} Neuman,{{sfn|Neuman|2022|pp=273–279|loc=Chapter 30: "The Screw-up at Macuto"}} DeFronzo,{{sfn|DeFronzo|2021|pp=457|loc=Section: Assassination and Coup Attempts against Maduro and His Government - Quote: "Operation Gideon was supposed to capture and remove Maduro and his close associates from power so that Guaidó could take over Venezuela"}} [[Vox (website)|Vox]],<ref name="Vox-Ridiculous2"/> and [[Europa Press]]<ref name= EuropaPress>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-11 |title=Venezuela investiga el uso de lanchas artilladas militares de Colombia en la 'Operación Gedeón' |url=https://www.europapress.es/internacional/noticia-venezuela-investiga-uso-lanchas-artilladas-militares-colombia-operacion-gedeon-20200511222645.html |access-date=2023-11-21 |website=[[Europa Press (news agency)|Europa Press]] |quote='Operation Gideon', an armed intervention of mercenaries and ex-military soldiers aimed at overthrowing President Nicolás Maduro and installing Juan Guaidó as president.}}</ref> said that the goal of the operation was to install Guaidó as president.

== In popular culture ==

A 2024 documentary directed by Jen Gatien and [[Billy Corben]] titled ''[[Men of War (2024 film)|Men of War]]'' premiered at the [[Toronto Film Festival]] in September.<ref>{{Cite web |date=6 September 2024 |title='Men of War' Review: Masculine Bravado Runs Amok in Doc Examining How a Coup Failed in Venezuela |url=https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/men-of-war-review-tiff-venezuela-coup-doc-1236132797/ |access-date=11 September 2024 |website=Variety}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Venezuela}}
*[[Colombia–Venezuela relations]]
*[[Golpe Azul]]
*[[Machurucuto raid]]
*[[Operation Red Dog]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
====Journal articles ====
* {{cite journal |date=February 2023 |title=How sanctions led to authoritarian capitalism in Venezuela |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/367769292 |last1=Bull |first1=Benedicte |last2=Rosales |first2=Antulio |journal=[[Current History]] |location=Oakland |volume=122 |issue=841 |pages=49–55 |doi=10.1525/curh.2023.122.841.49 |hdl=10852/99738 |s2cid=256449775 |id={{ProQuest|2770716344}}|hdl-access=free }}
* {{cite journal |last=Corrales |first=Javier |date=3 July 2020 |title=Authoritarian survival: why Maduro hasn't fallen |url=https://cpo4303.info/assets/docs/why_Maduro_hasnt_fallen_2020.233145855.pdf |url-status=live |journal=[[Journal of Democracy]] |volume=31 |issue=3 |pages=39–53 |doi=10.1353/jod.2020.0044 |s2cid=226738491 |id={{ProQuest|2429461768}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230930195511/https://cpo4303.info/assets/docs/why_Maduro_hasnt_fallen_2020.233145855.pdf |archive-date=30 September 2023}}
* {{cite journal |date=22 June 2022 |title=A friend and foe teach us how not to handle Venezuela |url=https://chicagopolicyreview.org/2022/06/22/a-friend-and-foe-teach-us-how-not-to-handle-venezuela/ |last=Harwood |first=Graham |url-status=live |journal= Chicago Policy Review |publisher=[[Harris School of Public Policy]] |id={{ProQuest|2679242951}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220622210853/https://chicagopolicyreview.org/2022/06/22/a-friend-and-foe-teach-us-how-not-to-handle-venezuela/ |archive-date=22 June 2022}}
* {{cite journal |year=2021 |first=Steven A. |last=Koh |title=The criminalization of foreign relations |journal=Fordham Law Review |url=https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/faculty_scholarship/3083 |url-status=live |volume=90 |pages=737–787 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230329195422im_/https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4089&context=faculty_scholarship#toolbar=0&navpanes=0&scrollbar=1 |archive-date=29 March 2023}}
* {{cite journal |first=Rafael Duarte |last=Villa |year=2022 |title=Venezuelan military: a political and ideological model in Chavista governments |url=https://edisciplinas.usp.br/pluginfile.php/6639528/mod_folder/content/0/Villa%20%202021.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Defence Studies |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=79–98 |doi=10.1080/14702436.2021.1976061 |s2cid=246801363 |id={{EBSCOhost|155858391}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230930201545/https://edisciplinas.usp.br/pluginfile.php/6639528/mod_folder/content/0/Villa%20%202021.pdf |archive-date=30 September 2023}}

==== Books ====
* {{cite book |last= DeFronzo |first= James |chapter= Revolution Through Democracy |title= Revolutions and Revolutionary Movements |edition= 6th |location= United Kingdom |publisher= Taylor & Francis |year= 2021 |pages= 433–487|isbn= 9781000434576 |doi= 10.4324/9781003102649-11}}
* {{cite book |chapter= Venezuela: A revolutionary petrostate under stress |last= Mijares |first= Victor M |editor-first1=Christine J. |editor-last1= Wade |editor-first2= Harvey F. |editor-last2= Kline|title= Latin American Politics and Development |edition= 10th |location= United Kingdom |publisher= Taylor & Francis |year= 2022 |pages= 223–246 |isbn= 9781000620559 |doi= 10.4324/9781003223351-16}}
* {{Cite book |last=Neuman |first=William |title=[[Things Are Never So Bad That They Can't Get Worse: Inside the Collapse of Venezuela]]|publisher=[[St. Martin's Press]] |year=2022 |isbn=978-1250266163|edition=1st |language=en}}
* {{cite book |year= 2022 |url= https://www.book2look.com/book/9781009205962 |title= U.S. and Latin American Relations |first1= Gregory B. |last1= Weeks |first2= Michael E. |last2= Allison |publisher= Cambridge University Press |isbn= 978-1009205993}}

== External links ==
* {{cite report |date= 18 September 2023 |title= El aparato estatal, sus mecanismos de represión y las restricciones al espacio cívico y democrático: Misión internacional independiente de determinación de los hechos sobre la República Bolivariana de Venezuela* |language= es |trans-title= The state apparatus, its mechanisms of repression and the restrictions on civic and democratic space: Independent international fact-finding mission about the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela |publisher= Office of High Commissioner of Human Rights, United Nations |access-date= 27 September 2023 |url= https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session54/advance-versions/A_HRC_54_CRP8_CleanVersion.pdf}}

{{Bolivarian Venezuela Crisis|state=collapsed}}

[[Category:2020 crimes in South America]]
[[Category:2020 in international relations]]
[[Category:2020 in Venezuela]]
[[Category:Battles in 2020]]
[[Category:Colombia–Venezuela relations]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 2020]]
[[Category:Covert operations]]
[[Category:Crisis in Venezuela]]
[[Category:Diplomatic incidents]]
[[Category:Insurgencies in South America]]
[[Category:International maritime incidents]]
[[Category:May 2020 crimes in South America]]
[[Category:May 2020 events in Venezuela]]
[[Category:Naval battles involving Venezuela]]
[[Category:Political repression in Venezuela]]
[[Category:Rebellions in Venezuela]]
[[Category:United States–Venezuela relations]]
[[Category:Venezuelan presidential crisis]]
[[Category:Violence in Venezuela]]
[[Category:Violent non-state actor incidents in South America]]

Pages transcluded onto the current version of this page (help):

Template:'" (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Abbr (view source) (protected)
Template:About (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Ambox (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Bolivarian Venezuela Crisis (edit)
Template:Catalog lookup link (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Category handler (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite AV media (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Cite book (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite interview (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Cite journal (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite magazine (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite news (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite press release (view source) (protected)
Template:Cite report (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Cite web (view source) (protected)
Template:Clarify (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Convert (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Country data Colombia (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Country data Russia (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Country data United States (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela short (edit)
Template:Crisis in Venezuela (edit)
Template:Crisis in Venezuela short (edit)
Template:DMCA (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Dated maintenance category (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Dated maintenance category (articles) (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Delink (view source) (protected)
Template:EBSCOhost (view source) (semi-protected)
Template:Efn (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Em (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:External media (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:FULLROOTPAGENAME (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Failed verification (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Fix (view source) (protected)
Template:Fix-span (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Fix/category (view source) (protected)
Template:Flag (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Flag/core (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Further (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Hlist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:Ill (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:In lang (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Infobox (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Infobox military conflict (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Interlanguage link (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:KIA (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Lang (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Langx (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Main (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Main other (view source) (protected)
Template:Navbox (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Notelist (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Ns has subpages (view source) (protected)
Template:POV (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:POV section (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:POW (view source) (semi-protected)
Template:Pagetype (view source) (protected)
Template:Photo montage (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Photomontage (view source) (extended confirmed protected)
Template:Portal (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Portal-inline (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:ProQuest (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Reflist (view source) (protected)
Template:Reflist/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Template:Replace (view source) (protected)
Template:SDcat (view source) (protected)
Template:Separated entries (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Sfn (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Short description (view source) (protected)
Template:Short description/lowercasecheck (view source) (protected)
Template:Sidebar with collapsible lists (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Single+double (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Small (view source) (protected)
Template:Template other (view source) (protected)
Template:Translation (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Unbalanced section (edit)
Template:Use American English (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:Use dmy dates (view source) (template editor protected)
Template:YouTube (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:About (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Arguments (view source) (protected)
Module:Catalog lookup link (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Category handler (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/blacklist (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/data (view source) (protected)
Module:Category handler/shared (view source) (protected)
Module:Check for unknown parameters (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1 (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/COinS (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Date validation (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Identifiers (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Utilities (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/Whitelist (view source) (protected)
Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Convert (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Convert/data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Convert/text (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:DecodeEncode (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Delink (view source) (protected)
Module:Disambiguation/templates (view source) (protected)
Module:Footnotes (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Footnotes/anchor id list (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Footnotes/anchor id list/data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Footnotes/whitelist (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Format link (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Hatnote list (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:In lang (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Infobox (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Infobox/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:InfoboxImage (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Infobox military conflict (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Infobox military conflict/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Labelled list hatnote (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/ISO 639 synonyms (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data/iana languages (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data/iana regions (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data/iana scripts (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data/iana suppressed scripts (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/data/iana variants (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Lang/langx (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Message box (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box/ambox.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Message box/configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Namespace detect/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Namespace detect/data (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbar (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbar/configuration (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbar/styles.css (view source) (protected)
Module:Navbox (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Navbox/configuration (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Navbox/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Ns has subpages (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/config (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/disambiguation (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/rfd (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/setindex (view source) (protected)
Module:Pagetype/softredirect (view source) (protected)
Module:Photo montage (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Portal (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Portal-inline (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Portal/images/v (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Portal/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:SDcat (view source) (protected)
Module:Separated entries (view source) (protected)
Module:Sidebar (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Sidebar/configuration (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Sidebar/styles.css (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:String (view source) (protected)
Module:TableTools (view source) (protected)
Module:Unicode data (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Unsubst (view source) (protected)
Module:WPMILHIST Infobox style (view source) (template editor protected)
Module:Wikitext Parsing (view source) (protected)
Module:Yesno (view source) (protected)

Return to Operation Gideon (2020).

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Gideon_(2020)"