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The audacious escape of political leader María Corina Machado involved a lengthy, frightening and very wet sea crossing in the pitch black of night, according to the American man who claims to have commanded the operation.

The Perilous Nighttime Voyage

Bryan Stern, who leads a rescue nonprofit, detailed the operation in a recent interview. It was perilous. It was scary,” said Stern, a US special forces veteran, describing dark and choppy conditions that simultaneously offered convenient cover for the flight.

“The sea conditions were ideal for us, but not water you'd choose to sail on ... the bigger the swells, the harder it is for radar to see,” Stern said.

He recalled rendezvousing with Machado offshore after she departed from the country, where she had been lying low since August 2024 due to fear of targeting by the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

The Step-by-Step Extraction

She boarded his boat for a 13- to 14-hour trip to an undisclosed location to catch a plane, as part of orchestrated just days before. “This was in the middle of the night – minimal moonlight, a little bit of cloud cover, very hard to see, boats have no lights. Everyone was quite damp. My team and I were soaked to the gills. She was also chilled and wet. She endured a grueling passage,” Stern noted.

Describing her condition, he said, She was elated. She was very excited. She was exhausted,” adding that about two dozen people were actively participating within his team.

Confirmation and Concealment

A representative for Machado verified that Stern’s company was responsible for the operation, which commenced earlier in the week. 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, referencing his company’s future work in the country.

Funding and US Role

He stated publicly the mission was funded through “several benefactors” – none of whom were US government figures involved. “The US government did not contribute a single penny, to my knowledge,” Stern said.

He clarified, though, 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 American backing to depart Venezuela. She has announced plans to go back, though it is not clear how or when.

Stern said his group would not be involved in that operation, as it worked only on extracting individuals from countries, not in. “That’s for her to determine and for her to decide. Personally, I advise against returning. But she wants to. Maria is truly inspirational,” he concluded.