Henry de Jesús Rangel Silva (born 1961) was the governor of Trujillo, Venezuela in 2012-2021. A military general and former Minister of Defense, noticias24.com, 17 January 2012, Perfil: Henry Rangel Silva, el nuevo ministro de la Defensa Rangel Silva was previously the head of Operational Strategic Command of the Venezuelan Armed Forces, head of the DISIP (from 2005) and Director of CANTV (from 2009). Rangel Silva took part in the coup attempt of February 1992 together with Hugo Chávez.
Career In 2008, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned three current or former Venezuelan government officials, saying there was evidence they had materially helped the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in the illegal drug trade. The order "freezes any assets the designated entities and individuals may have under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibits U.S. persons from conducting financial or commercial transactions involving those assets". Rangel, Hugo Carvajal, former director of Venezuela's military intelligence (DGIM); and Ramón Rodríguez Chacín, former Minister of the Interior, were sanctioned.
In November 2010, Rangel declared that the military forces are "married to the political, socialist project" led by Hugo Chávez in Venezuela.Military Forces 'married' to Hugo Chávez's socialist projectBloomberg, 12 November 2010, Chávez promotes Venezuelan general criticized for threat against opposition Then he added that the arrival of a government different from Chávez would be unacceptable:
"The hypothesis (of an opposition government) is difficult, it would mean to sell of the country, people won't accept that, the Armed Forces won't and the people less."
Shortly after, Rangel was promoted to General-in-Chief, the highest rank obtainable in the Venezuelan military."Chávez le da un espaldarazo a Rangel Silva: Lo asciende a General en Jefe " (in Spanish). Noticias24.com (November 11, 2010). Retrieved on October 11, 2013.
In October 2012, Rangel Silva was chosen as the PSUV's candidate in Trujillo state after the then-current governor, Hugo Cabezas, announced he would not seek re-election. In December, he was elected governor of Trujillo state by 82.30% of the vote,'REGIONAL RELEASE 2012" (in Spanish). National Electoral Council (December 16, 2012). Retrieved October 11, 2013."En todas las parroquias de Trujillo arrasó Henry Rangel Silva " (in Spanish). Noticias24 (December 18, 2012). Retrieved October 11, 2013. in Venezuela's regional elections of 2012. He was re-elected in the 2017 regional elections by 59.75% of the vote. He lost PSUV primaries for 2021 regional elections.
References
External links US Treasury Department accuses Rangel Silva of helping the FARC in drug dealing