The Trump administration has said that six people were killed in the latest US strike on a vessel off the Venezuelan coast.
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A report from Mark Bassant of TV6 News
Two Trinidadian nationals are believed to be among the dead following the fifth strike on a vessel by US forces of the Venezuelan coast on Tuesday targeting drug cartels.
The Trump administration has said that six people were killed in the latest incident, bringing the number of deaths since September to 27.
But according to Mark Bassant of TV6 News, the relatives of 28-year-old fisherman Chad Burnley say based on the information they received on Tuesday night, they are certain he was one of the six men killed.
The fifth lethal kinetic strike in as many weeks off the course of Venezuela may have claimed the lives of at least two Trinidadians who on board, with relatives of one of the men coming forward saying that 28-year-old Chad Burnley from Las Cuevas was one of them.
Two relatives who spoke to TV6 News exclusively said that Burnley had been in Colombia for the last four months and had made at least two previous attempts to get home.
However, both relatives confirmed that on those occasions the vessel they were travelling in was shot at and they had to return to Colombia.
However, Burnley in company with another Trinidadian and four Venezuelan nationals left Colombia sometime late Sunday or early Monday and decided to make the journey to what Trinidad, the relatives explained.
One relative said that the men travelled along the coastline and were reportedly shot at several times as they neared Venezuela. The vessel ran aground somewhere in the Carapano area.
The relatives said based on the information they received, Burnley and the others decided to wait it out for a few hours before venturing to Trinidad.
Another female relative said that a boat was supposed to meet Burnley and the other Trinidadian and Trinidad waters and take them home.
However, when they left Venezuela and entered international waters, the boat was struck killing all six men aboard.
Relatives said one of Burnley's close relatives was contacted yesterday and told that Billie was on the boat that was destroyed by the US.
His relatives said they could not say what he was doing in Colombia all that time, and could not say with any certainty if he had been involved in illegal activities, but described him as a nice, loving and caring person.
Attempts to contact Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander and whether he had been notified if any Trinidadians had been killed in the latest US strike unsuccessful.
Last week, Colombia's President Gustavo Petro said that a boat recently bombed by the US was Colombian with Colombian citizens aboard.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump on Thursday confirmed a report that he authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela and said he was considering strikes targeting drug cartels there.
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