Femi Ashekun/
Venezuelan President, Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been formally indicted in the Southern District of New York on a suite of criminal charges, the United States Attorney General, Pamela Bondi, announced on social media platform, X.
Bondi posted that Maduro faces charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machineguns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess such weapons against the United States.
The attorney general said the pair “will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts” following their capture.
In her message, Bondi expressed gratitude to U.S. President, Donald Trump, for what she described as his courage in pushing for accountability and thanked the U.S. military for an “incredible and highly successful” operation to apprehend the couple.
The indictments come after a dramatic military operation early Saturday in which U.S. forces reportedly struck several Venezuelan military sites and seized Maduro and Flores in Caracas, subsequently transporting them out of the country.
U.S. officials say the pair are en route to New York to face criminal proceedings.
Maduro’s legal troubles in the United States date back to a 2020 indictment, when U.S. prosecutors accused him and other members of his government of running a narco-terrorism network that collaborated with foreign drug traffickers to ship cocaine into the United States.
Those earlier charges formed the basis for the updated indictment now unsealed following his capture.
Maduro has led Venezuela since 2013, succeeding the late Hugo Chávez amid political turmoil and economic crisis.
The United States has long accused his government of corruption, human rights abuses and ties to international drug cartels, including the so-called Cartel de los Soles.
U.S. authorities have previously offered multi-million-dollar rewards for information leading to his arrest.
The operation that led to Maduro’s capture has drawn mixed international reaction.
Some U.S. lawmakers praised the action as a blow against organised crime and drug trafficking, while critics at home and abroad raised concerns about sovereignty and adherence to international law.
Venezuelan officials have condemned the raid, demanding verification of Maduro’s status and location.
Legal analysts say the case could become one of the most significant prosecutions of a sitting head of state in U.S. history, raising complex questions about jurisdiction, diplomatic immunity, and precedents for transnational enforcement against alleged criminal leaders.
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