A Venezuelan judge has issued an arrest warrant for Edmundo Gonzalez, the opposition candidate in the country’s recent presidential election.
This follows a request from the prosecutor’s office loyal to President Nicolás Maduro.
Mr Maduro was declared the winner of July’s election by the country’s electoral commission, which is made up of government loyalists.
But the government has yet to release any evidence to support its claim of victory, while the opposition says their polling data shows Gonzalez winning easily.
After receiving a petition from the Venezuelan prosecutor’s office, Judge Edward Briceño, who oversees terrorism-related crimes in Venezuela, immediately approved the request and issued an arrest warrant for Gonzalez.
“No one in this country is above the law and institutions,” AFP quoted President Maduro as saying in its weekly television program on Monday.
The move marks a significant increase in political tensions in the South American country.
Mr Gonzalez was the candidate running against Mr Maduro in the country’s most recent presidential election. Since the vote, his opposition coalition has released voting figures online that it says show he won the election by a huge margin of more than 30 percent.
It was this data that led to the issuance of the arrest warrant.
Prosecutors said he was charged with “serious crimes” including “usurping” public office, forging documents, inciting disobedience and subverting the system.
Mr Gonzalez, who has been in hiding since shortly after the election, denies any wrongdoing.
The EU said it would not recognize Mr Maduro’s re-election win in July without seeing detailed vote counts.
Some Latin American countries, including Mr Maduro’s former ally Brazilian President Lula Lula, have also stopped short of offering support, including those calling for full transparency from Venezuela’s government.
The United States acknowledged that Gonzalez won a majority of the vote and said there was “overwhelming” evidence that Maduro had failed.
However, the government-controlled National Electoral Council declared President Maduro the winner, triggering massive protests across Venezuela.
President Maduro’s government has detained more than 2,400 people since the election, creating what the United Nations calls a “climate of fear.”
Now, the possibility that Mr Gonzalez could also be detained for inciting public disorder and conspiracy has suddenly become greater.
Previously, the U.S. Department of Justice Seizure of a plane used by President Madurosaying its acquisition violated U.S. sanctions on Venezuela.
In response, President Maduro’s government accused Washington of “piracy” and “illegal imposition of its will” around the world.
