US sanctions Venezuela intelligence officials

The US Treasury placed four senior Venezuelan military intelligence officials on its sanctions blacklist Friday, tying them to the death in custody of a navy captain who was allegedly tortured. Division General Rafael Ramon Blanco Marrero, Colonel Hannover Esteban Guerrero Mijares, Major Alexander Enrique Granko Arteaga and Colonel Rafael Antonio Franco Quintero are officials of the General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence, which was sanctioned as an entity on July 11.