Brooklyn, January 4, 2026 — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was taken into custody in the United States on Saturday, marking a dramatic escalation in tensions between the two countries. Upon entering the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, Maduro reportedly stated, “Good night. Happy New Year.”
From Caracas to Custody: Maduro Faces U.S. Charges
The Venezuelan president is now in U.S. custody facing charges of narcoterrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine.
- Maduro was transported to Manhattan via helicopter after being processed at a DEA facility.
- He faces federal charges including narcoterrorism and weapons-related crimes.
- U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been formally charged.
- President Trump confirmed a “large-scale attack” on Venezuelan soil led to their capture.
Maduro arrived in Manhattan today after landing in a helicopter near 31st Street on the Hudson River’s west side. He was previously flown on a military Boeing 757 to Stewart Air National Guard Base in upstate New York, where he was met by agents from the FBI and DEA. Temperatures at the base were near two degrees Celsius below zero. He was taken into custody in handcuffs and transported to Manhattan by helicopter, escorted by a caravan of police vehicles, according to television reports.
What are the charges against Maduro? Maduro, initially indicted in 2020 by the Southern District of New York, now faces a substitute accusation in the same court. The charges include narcoterrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States, and crimes related to automatic weapons. The original indictment, based on a DEA investigation, alleges Maduro led the “Cartel of the Suns,” a network accused of using cocaine to destabilize the United States.
The White House’s rapid response team shared a video on Saturday appearing to show Maduro’s arrest and transfer, with the account stating, “Arrested and escorted,” accompanied by the phrase «DEA ENJOY».
The Venezuelan president was captured in Caracas early Saturday morning by U.S. forces and transported to Guantánamo before being moved to Stewart Air National Guard Base. Dozens of federal agents were waiting at the New York base, prepared to take him into custody.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced via X that Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were “formally charged in the Southern District of New York.” Bondi stated, “They will soon face the full weight of American justice on American soil and before American courts.”
President Trump confirmed that the U.S. “successfully carried out a large-scale attack” on Venezuelan soil, resulting in Maduro and his wife being “captured and taken out of the country.”
The next step in Maduro’s case is expected to unfold in the coming days before a federal judge in Manhattan.
