Cape Verde court OKs extradition to US of Venezuelan ally

By JOSHUA GOODMAN and BARRY HATTON
Associated Press

MIAMI (AP) — A court in Cape Verde has ruled that a businessman close to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro arrested last year in the West African country can be extradited to the United States to face money-laundering charges. The Constitutional Court on Tuesday unanimously rejected Alex Saab’s appeal of an earlier court ruling in favor of extradition. Saab’s legal team has declined immediate comment. Saab was arrested in June 2020 when his private jet made a refueling stop on the small island chain en route to Iran on what the Venezuelan government has described as a humanitarian mission. U.S. officials believe Saab holds numerous secrets about how Maduro, the president’s family and his top aides allegedly siphoned off millions of dollars.