A former Miami congressman and close friend of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been convicted in connection with a secret $50 million lobbying campaign on behalf of Venezuela’s socialist government during the first Trump administration.

The criminal trial of a former congressman is offering a glimpse into the prehistory of the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

The trial has begun for former congressman David Rivera over allegations he secretly lobbied for Venezuela’s government during the first Trump administration.

A grand jury in Washington has returned an indictment against former Congressman David Rivera for failing to register as a foreign agent of a sanctioned Venezuelan media tycoon on whose behalf the Miami Republican allegedly lobbied the Trump administration.