A Venezuelan court has ordered an opponent of President Hugo Chavez to be tried on charges of hiding explosives in his home.
Alejandro Pena Esclusa called the case a politically motivated vendetta, saying in a statement that he is a “victim of a plot by the Venezuelan government” in response to his vocal criticisms.
The attorney general’s office said that a Caracas court ordered the case to go to trial.
Pena was arrested on July 12. Authorities said agents who raided his apartment found about 100 detonators and 2lb of C-4 explosives.
He has called the charges preposterous, saying authorities planted explosives in his eight-year-old daughter’s desk drawer.
It is unclear when his trial could begin.