NYT traces Turkish tycoon Turhan Mildon’s path from Maduro’s circle to Trump’s

A New York Times investigation traced how 29-year-old Turkish businessman Turhan Mildon built ties from Congo and Maduro’s Venezuela to President Trump’s inner circle, culminating in his marriage to Alina Habba.

Ally Daily Editorial DeskOctober 13, 2026, 10:45 AMUpdated: October 14, 2026, 06:54 PM

NYT traces Turkish tycoon Turhan Mildon’s path from Maduro’s circle to Trump’s

A New York Times investigation based on interviews with more than two dozen people has traced the rapid rise of Turhan Mildon, the 29-year-old Turkish businessman who married Alina Habba, President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, in September.

According to the Times, Mildon’s political connections stretched from Türkiye and the Democratic Republic of Congo to Nicolás Maduro’s Venezuela and finally to Trump’s orbit. In an interview with Forbes Türkiye this month, Mildon summed up his approach: “In my grandfather’s time, know-how mattered. Now it is know-who.”

From Congo to Caracas

Alex Saab (file photo)

The Times reported that after meeting Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi at an event in Istanbul, Mildon secured construction contracts in Congo, became an adviser to Tshisekedi in 2023 and obtained a Congolese diplomatic passport.

In Venezuela, his key contact was Alex Saab, one of Maduro’s closest confidants and then industry minister. In March 2025, Saab granted Mildon a contract to run state-owned cement plants, and months later he took control of a shrimp company that had been seized by the government. Mildon’s spokesperson said his ties to Saab were purely professional and that he competed against four rivals for the cement contract.

Richard Grenell (file photo)

Sanctions talk and a suspended cancellation

The Times reported that Mildon spent months trying to connect Saab with Republicans in Trump’s circle and grew close to Richard Grenell, Trump’s special envoy for Venezuela, through whom he met Habba. Two people told the newspaper the administration had considered sanctioning Mildon over his Venezuela work; his spokesperson called that “completely false,” and an administration official also disputed it.

After Maduro was captured by U.S. forces in January, interim leader Delcy Rodríguez ordered an audit of the cement plants and in June moved to terminate Mildon’s contract over missed targets. But according to two people close to Rodríguez, she suspended the termination after learning of his relationship with Habba, allowing him to keep earning from the plants. His spokesperson said the company only learned of the termination on Oct. 8, when the Times began asking questions, and considers it a mistake.

Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodríguez

A wedding of Washington power

The couple married at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, with Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Counsel Will Scharf among the guests. Habba denied using her connections for her husband: “Under no circumstances have I approached the White House or the administration on my husband’s behalf. He would never ask me to.”

NYT traces Turkish tycoon Turhan Mildon’s path from Maduro’s circle to Trump’s