Venezuela's attorney general asked the Supreme Court on Tuesday to bar Juan Guaido, the self-proclaimed acting president and opposition leader, from leaving the country and to freeze his assets.
The move comes after the United States earlier said it has handed control of Venezuela's US bank accounts to Guaido, to prevent President Nicolas Maduro from commandeering them in an eventual exit from power.
Guaido had said on Monday he was taking control of Venezuela's foreign assets to stop Maduro from emptying the "coffers."
Attorney General Tarek William Saab told the Supreme Court he had come to "ask for precautionary measures" against Guaido to prevent him from leaving the country or moving assets, while also freezing his accounts.
Saab, a regime loyalist, said the measures were part of the investigation into the National Assembly ordered by the court last week.
That was a response to the legislature officially declaring Maduro a "usurper" over his reelection last May in a poll boycotted by the opposition and widely branded a fraud internationally.
Guaido responded by saying he wasn't surprised by the measures and described them as part of a chain of "threats" against himself and the opposition-controlled parliament.
"More than a new threat against me, against this parliament, against the acting president of this republic, there's nothing new," he said at the entrance to the National Assembly.
"I'm not dismissing the threats, the persecution at this time, but we're here, we're continuing to do our jobs."
Backed principally by the US, Guaido has been at loggerheads with Maduro and his regime since proclaiming himself the country's acting president January 23.
Washington has supported his bid to oust Maduro, who is backed by Venezuela's powerful military, and on Monday slapped sanctions on the state oil company PDVSA, the country's primary source of revenue.
Venezuela’s attorney general asked the Supreme Court on Tuesday to bar Juan Guaido, the self-proclaimed acting president and opposition leader, from leaving the country and to freeze his assets.
The move comes after the United States earlier said it has handed control of Venezuela’s US bank accounts to Guaido, to prevent President Nicolas Maduro from commandeering them in an eventual exit from power.
Guaido had said on Monday he was taking control of Venezuela’s foreign assets to stop Maduro from emptying the “coffers.”
Attorney General Tarek William Saab told the Supreme Court he had come to “ask for precautionary measures” against Guaido to prevent him from leaving the country or moving assets, while also freezing his accounts.
Saab, a regime loyalist, said the measures were part of the investigation into the National Assembly ordered by the court last week.
That was a response to the legislature officially declaring Maduro a “usurper” over his reelection last May in a poll boycotted by the opposition and widely branded a fraud internationally.
Guaido responded by saying he wasn’t surprised by the measures and described them as part of a chain of “threats” against himself and the opposition-controlled parliament.
“More than a new threat against me, against this parliament, against the acting president of this republic, there’s nothing new,” he said at the entrance to the National Assembly.
“I’m not dismissing the threats, the persecution at this time, but we’re here, we’re continuing to do our jobs.”
Backed principally by the US, Guaido has been at loggerheads with Maduro and his regime since proclaiming himself the country’s acting president January 23.
Washington has supported his bid to oust Maduro, who is backed by Venezuela’s powerful military, and on Monday slapped sanctions on the state oil company PDVSA, the country’s primary source of revenue.
