According to the Los Angeles Times, the videotaped coverage of the hostage release showed minister Rodriguez Chacín telling FARC rebels "We are with you... Be strong.
[7] Rodriguez Chacín, the Minister of Interior and Justice, stepped down on September 8, 2008: "For strictly personal grounds, I have decided to leave my job.
[10] In September 2008, The U.S. Department of the Treasury accused Rodriguez Chacín of materially assisting FARC's narcotics trafficking activities;[11][12][13] the Venezuelan government said he was not guilty of those charges.
[14] US intelligence officials claimed that in an email between Rodriguez Chacín and the FARC leadership that he asked to train Venezuela's military in guerrilla tactics as preparation in case the United States invades.
"[15][16] In 2008, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned three current or former Venezuelan government officials, including Rodríguez, saying there was evidence they had materially helped the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in the illegal drug trade.