AFP, Caracas :
Venezuela issued an arrest warrant for a second opposition figure, his party said, ramping up the pressure on protesters who have staged nationwide rallies in the biggest challenge to President Nicolas Maduro since he came to power.
Near-daily demonstrations have seen duelling pro- and anti-government protesters face off in sometimes violent confrontations that have left 14 people dead in the deeply polarized and economically troubled oil-rich country since the start of February.
Leopoldo Lopez, of the opposition Voluntad Popular ( Popular Will), turned himself in last week after a warrant went out for his arrest. The party said on Thursday that Maduro’s embattled government was now seeking Carlos Vecchio, the party’s national political coordinator.
The party said the arrest warrant issued by judge Ralenis Tovar Guillen ordered the general directorate of military intelligence to capture Vecchio “for the alleged crimes of arson, public incitement, damage and criminal association,” the same charges brought against Lopez.
Court officials have not confirmed the move against Vecchio. In a tweet, Vecchio said the warrant was politically motivated. “There is no evidence against me,” he wrote.
