Expert warns of 'extreme violence' in Venezuelan mining as Trump admin eyes mineral reserves

The Trump administration’s renewed interest in tapping Venezuela’s mineral reserves could carry with it "serious risk," an expert on illicit economies has warned in the wake of the capture of Nicolás Maduro.

A day after the U.S. military captured Maduro in Caracas, Trump administration officials highlighted their interest in the country's critical mineral potential.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters on Jan. 4, "You have steel, you have minerals, all the critical minerals.