CARACAS, April 10(V7N) – Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday appointed Larry Devoe, a figure with close ties to the ruling “Chavismo” movement, as the country’s new attorney general, replacing Tarek William Saab.  

Saab resigned in February following the dramatic capture of ousted leader Nicolas Maduro by U.S. forces in a bombing raid on Caracas. He had faced criticism for ignoring human rights abuses under Maduro’s rule.  

Devoe, who had been serving as acting attorney general since Saab’s departure, previously headed the National Human Rights Council. In 2019, Canada sanctioned him along with 42 other Maduro-era officials, labeling them “key figures in the regime.”  

His appointment is the latest in a series of changes since Maduro and his wife were taken to the United States to face drug trafficking charges. Opposition lawmaker Henrique Capriles criticized the move, calling for Venezuela’s institutions to be led by independent figures rather than politically active ones.  

END/WD/RH