Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Captured in Venezuela, Arrives in New York for Federal Charges

Capture and Arrival in New York

• 🇻🇪 Former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Celia Flores, have been captured by DEA agents in Venezuela and flown to New York City.
• ✈️ They arrived at Steuart Air National Guard Base in Orange County, escorted by DEA agents, before being transported by helicopter to Manhattan.
• 📍 Maduro and Flores are expected to be held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to face criminal charges.

Operation Absolute Resolve

• 💥 The capture followed a large-scale military operation, dubbed "Operation Absolute Resolve," conducted by US forces in Caracas, Venezuela.
• 🌃 The operation involved "fiery explosions" lighting up the sky over the capital city in the "dead of night."
• 🎯 The military assault is described as a culmination of an intensifying pressure campaign by the Trump administration.

Criminal Charges and Allegations

• ⚖️ Maduro is accused of being the "kingpin of a vast criminal network responsible for trafficking colossal amounts of deadly and illicit drugs into the United States."
• 🚨 He is expected to face charges including narco-terrorism, with indictments on these charges dating back to 2020.
• 🗣️ Maduro has claimed the US is using drug smuggling accusations as an excuse to oust him from power.

US Governance of Venezuela

• 🇺🇸 President Trump stated that the United States will "run Venezuela" for the time being, citing concerns about who might take over.
• 🤝 This comes after Maduro's vice president, Deli Rodriguez, who had previously expressed willingness to work with US leaders during a transition, demanded Maduro's release.