Ex-Green Beret captured in Venezuela believed U.S. backed overthrow plot: family

But the relationship soured and Goudreau moved forward with the operation anyway, according to accounts in the Associated Press and Washington Post.Guaido has denied having anything to do with the effort to oust Maduro, but two of his U.S.-based advisers resigned this week after they acknowledged signing an agreement with Goudreau for a mission to arrest Maduro.In interviews with NBC News, a half dozen family members and close friends of Denman and Berry said they believe the former Special Operations soldiers would have only participated in such an operation had the two men been convinced it was supported by the U.S. government.Some of the friends and relatives said they now believe the men fell under the sway of Goudreau, who led them in overseas deployments, and were ultimately misled.“The only conclusion I can draw is he was intentionally deceived,” said Daniel Dochen, a longtime friend of Denman. “And Goudreau sent his former comrade-in-arms on a suicide mission in service of his ego.”Dochen said Denman had told him sometime prior to the botched operation that he was involved in an effort “sanctioned by the U.S. government.” “That’s really all I know about it,” Dochen said.Berry’s wife, Melanie, told NBC News that she, too, feels strongly that he was led to believe the U.S. backed the plan. “He said he couldn’t share anything with me but that it’s for a good cause,” Melanie Berry recalled.After Denman left the service, he bounced around the country and worked a handful of jobs – first at a tree nursery in Austin, then in hotel security in Florida and finally as an underwater welder in Louisiana.Unlike many former Special Forces members, he seemed uninterested in pursuing contract work overseas, according to his family and friends.Sometime in 2017, Denman visited his old Special Forces buddy White during a cross-country motorcycle trip. He said his job was to seize control of the airport in Caracas and bring in a plane to be used to fly Maduro to the U.S.“I was helping Venezuelans take back control of their country,” Denman says.It’s unclear if Denman was pressured to make certain admissions, but one of the things that stood out to his former fellow ex-Green Beret Drew White was Denman’s payday.“Fifty to $100,000?