US Indictment Accuses Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro of Leading Major Drug-Trafficking Operation

A newly released US justice department indictment accuses Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro of leading what prosecutors describe as a corrupt and illegitimate government sustained by a vast drug-trafficking network that sent thousands of tons of cocaine into the United States.

Maduro and his wife were captured in a dramatic military operation early Saturday inside Venezuela, setting the stage for a high-profile legal battle as US prosecutors prepare to try the long-time leader of the oil-rich South American country in a Manhattan federal court.

US attorney general Pam Bondi said in a post on X that Maduro and his wife “will soon face the full force of American justice in American courts”.

Charges against Maduro

Maduro has been charged alongside his wife, his son, and three other individuals. The indictment includes four major counts against him: conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess those weapons.

The charges mirror those brought against Maduro in a 2020 indictment filed during Donald Trump’s first term, though the newly unsealed filing adds charges against his wife, Cilia Flores. The indictment was filed under seal in the Southern District of New York shortly before Christmas and made public on Saturday.

It remains unclear when Maduro and Flores will make their first court appearance in Manhattan.

Alleged drug-trafficking network

A video shared Saturday night by a White House social media account showed Maduro smiling as he was escorted by US Drug Enforcement Administration agents through a DEA facility in New York. He is expected to remain in custody at a federal jail in Brooklyn while awaiting trial.

According to prosecutors, Maduro worked with “some of the world’s most violent and powerful drug traffickers and narco-terrorist organisations” to facilitate massive cocaine shipments into the US. Authorities allege groups such as Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang cooperated directly with Venezuelan officials, funneling profits to senior figures in exchange for protection.

The indictment claims Maduro allowed drug-driven corruption to thrive for his personal benefit, that of his regime, and members of his family.

US officials allege that by 2020 as much as 250 tons of cocaine moved through Venezuela each year with government support. The drugs were reportedly transported by speedboats, fishing vessels, container ships, and aircraft departing from clandestine airstrips.

Prosecutors say Venezuelan officials provided logistical support and law-enforcement cover, enabling traffickers to operate freely while enriching senior government figures and violent criminal groups.

Violence and bribery allegations

The indictment also accuses Maduro and his wife of ordering kidnappings, assaults, and killings against individuals who failed to pay drug debts or threatened their trafficking operations, including the murder of a drug boss in Caracas.

Flores is accused of taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in 2007 to arrange meetings between a major drug trafficker and the head of Venezuela’s National Anti-Drug Office. In exchange, the trafficker allegedly paid monthly bribes and about $100,000 per cocaine-laden flight to ensure safe passage, with a portion of the funds allegedly going to Flores.

Recorded meetings from 2015 captured nephews of Flores discussing plans to send large cocaine shipments from Maduro’s presidential hangar at a Venezuelan airport. During those conversations, the nephews reportedly described themselves as being “at war” with the United States.

The two nephews were sentenced in 2017 to 18 years in prison for drug trafficking conspiracy but were released in 2022 as part of a prisoner exchange involving seven detained Americans.

US response

At a news conference, secretary of state Marco Rubio and Joint Chiefs of Staff chair Dan Caine said the operation to capture Maduro and his wife was conducted at the request of the justice department. Caine described it as a law-enforcement mission supported by the military.

Rubio said the operation was fundamentally a legal action, adding that it represented a case where the “department of war supported the department of justice”.

He described Maduro as a fugitive from US justice with a $50 million reward offered for information leading to his capture.