THE MOST WANTED MAN IN VENEZUELA: Maduro says helicopter fired on Venezu...

Maduro says helicopter fired on Venezuela's Supreme Court | Daily Mail Online



He works for Venezuela's FBI, flies helicopters with precision skill, skydives with police dogs strapped to his chest, is trained to fight gun battles underwater - and is now the country's most wanted man.

Meet Oscar Perez, a former cop turned rogue agent who helped launch a gun and grenade attack on Venezuela's Supreme Court on Tuesday from a stolen helicopter.

President Nicolas Maduro branded the attack a 'coup attempt' and 'terrorist attack' before demanding a manhunt for the perpetrators - including Perez

According to his Instagram, which is littered with pictures of him wielding guns and modelling stylish outfits, Perez is an investigator with the specialist CICPC force, a tactical pilot and specialist K9 trainer, with 'a passion for my country'.

From the outside his life has all the trappings of an action film - so it is perhaps no surprise that he starred in a 2015 movie called 'Muerte Suspendida' ('Suspended Death') in which he plays a cop sent to rescue a wealthy hostage from a gang.

Perez was pictured in action in the skies above Caracas yesterday as he launched his attack, clearly visible at the controls of a CICPC helicopter as other masked militants dangled a flag from the door which reads: '350 Liberty.'

Perez also published several videos of himself standing in front of his fellow fighters, in which he delivers his reasons for attacking Maduro's government.

In it, he says: 'Dear brothers, we speak to you on behalf of the state; we are a coalition of military, police and civilians, in search of a balance against this transitory, criminal government.'

Branding Maduro's administration 'evil', he accuses the President of 'tyranny' and says he is seeking 'justice' for 'innocent people who fight for their rights, against hunger, against lack of health, against fanaticism.'

The helicopter assault comes a day after President Maduro announced the arrests of five opponents he accused of plotting against him to clear the way for a US invasion in a potentially dramatic escalation of the violence gripping the oil-rich South American country.

The beleaguered president, who for weeks has been thundering about alleged coup attempts against him, said the helicopter was flown by a pilot who worked for a former minister.

Around 15 shots were fired at the Interior Ministry, Maduro added.

'I have activated the entire armed forces to defend the peace,' he said in remarks from the Miraflores presidential palace.

'Sooner or later, we are going to capture that helicopter and those that carried out this terror attack.'

No one was hurt in the incident, he said.

The government identified the helicopter pilot as a former member of Venezuela's main police force, known as the CICPC.



Maduro called on the opposition MUD alliance to denounce the attack but one of its leaders, Freddy Guevara, tweeted there was not yet enough information to comment.

Guevara urged people to take part in anti-government rallies Wednesday - the latest in nearly three months of daily streets protests that have left 76 people dead.



Photos circulating on social media showed a helicopter flying over Caracas with a banner that read '350 Freedom' - alluding to a constitutional clause recently invoked by the opposition to assert the Maduro government's lack of legitimacy.

The photos showed two people on the chopper, one with his face covered with a mask and the other with it visible.

Earlier Tuesday, Maduro repeated claims of a US-backed coup attempt and angrily warned President Donald Trump that Venezuela would fight back against such a move.



Photos circulating on social media showed a helicopter flying over Caracas with a banner that read '350 Freedom' - alluding to a constitutional clause recently invoked by the opposition to assert the Maduro government's lack of legitimacy.

The photos showed two people on the chopper, one with his face covered with a mask and the other with it visible.

Earlier Tuesday, Maduro repeated claims of a US-backed coup attempt and angrily warned President Donald Trump that Venezuela would fight back against such a move.



'I am not exaggerating when I say it would have involved the arrival of American ships and troops in Venezuelan waters, on Venezuelan soil,' Maduro said.

And on Saturday the head of the Organization of American States dug his heels in a war of words with Caracas, flatly rejecting its demand that he resign.

Maduro had suggested that Luis Almagro - who has criticized the Venezuelan government for violating human rights, interfering in elections and detaining political prisoners - step down in exchange for the country's continued membership in the regional body.

Though Almagro dismissed that notion, the OAS General Assembly was unable to reach agreement on a plan to deal with the instability in Venezuela at a meeting in Cancun last week.