ABOUT THE EVENT

The CITGO 6, a group of executives from the Venezuelan American oil company CITGO who were detained in Venezuela, were arrested in November 2017 during a business meeting in Caracas and were subsequently accused of corruption and embezzlement-related charges. The Venezuelan government alleged that they had signed a deal that was disadvantageous to CITGO and the Venezuelan state.

The CITGO 6 became a focal point of international attention, with their detention raising concerns about the rule of law and due process in Venezuela. The case was seen by many as part of broader political and economic tensions between Venezuela and the United States.

In this compelling event, Jorge L. Toledo will share his gripping tale of survival, recounting the challenges he faced during his time in captivity in Venezuela and shedding light on the complexities of hostage diplomacy. This unique perspective offers attendees a rare opportunity to understand the human spirit’s remarkable ability to endure, adapt, and find hope even in the bleakest circumstances.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Jorge L. Toledo, an American Citizen, originally from Caracas Venezuela, is a former Oil and Gas senior executive, a visionary, an artist, a marathon runner, an enterprise architect, and a survivor of 1,775 days of extreme, arbitrary, and illegal detention in Venezuela.

Before developing his career in Oil and Gas, Toledo also received formal music education that made him a remarkable bass player and a recording artist in the early eighties. An avid marathon runner, he ran in different locations including New York, Chicago, Boston, Berlin, Barcelona, and Paris. Toledo holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (BSME) degree from the Simón Bolívar University, in Caracas, as well as an MBA and a Specialization in International Business from the University of Miami, in Coral Gables, Florida.

A father of two children and grandfather of two girls, he currently resides in Sugarland, Texas with his wife Carmen. After his release from captivity, Toledo engaged in a journey of public speaking to use his survival as a living experience to help and motivate others, as well as raising his voice to create awareness of a new threat to the civilized world, “Hostage Diplomacy”.