The Way a US Military Vet Aided María Corina Machado Flee Venezuela

This audacious escape of Venezuelan opposition figure María Corina Machado involved a lengthy, frightening and very wet sea crossing in the dead of night, as detailed by the US veteran who claims to have commanded the mission.

A Perilous Nighttime Voyage

Bryan Stern, who heads a rescue nonprofit, outlined the operation in a newly published interview. It was perilous. It was scary,” said Stern, a US special forces veteran, describing rough and moonless seas that simultaneously offered convenient cover for the flight.

“The ocean was perfect for our purposes, but certainly not water that you would want to be on ... the bigger the swells, the more difficult radar detection becomes,” he remarked.

He described meeting Machado out at sea after she departed from the country, where she had been lying low for over a year fearing targeting by the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

The Step-by-Step Escape Plan

She boarded his boat for a half-day journey to an secret location to catch a plane, in a mission planned just four days earlier. The operation occurred at midnight – very little moon, a little bit of cloud cover, very hard to see, vessels running dark. All of us were pretty wet. My team and I were soaked to the gills. She was pretty cold and wet, too. She had a very arduous journey,” Stern added.

Regarding her state, he commented, She was elated. She was very excited. She was very tired,” adding that about twenty-four people were actively participating within his team.

Verification and Disguise

Spokespeople for Machado verified that Stern’s foundation was responsible for the operation, which began on Tuesday. This account comes after earlier stories that Machado used a wig and costume to flee her hideout in a suburb of the Venezuelan capital, Caracas.

The veteran declined to share specifics about the land operation, citing his organization's ongoing operations in the region.

Financing and American Role

He stated publicly the mission was funded through “a few generous donors” – with no US government figures involved. Official US funds were not used, at least not that I know of,” Stern asserted.

He said, however, that his group did “unofficially collaborate” with the US military regarding positioning and plans, largely to avoid being mistakenly fired upon.

Future Plans and Inspiration

The opposition leader stated she had US support to depart Venezuela. She has announced plans to return home, though the specifics remain uncertain how or when.

Stern said his group would not be involved in that operation, as it worked only on extracting individuals from countries, not bringing them back. “That’s for her to determine for herself. Personally, I advise against returning. Yet she is determined. She is a genuine inspiration,” he said.