Overview
- Attorney General Pam Bondi announced formal indictments in the Southern District of New York, naming Maduro and Cilia Flores on narcoterrorism, cocaine importation, and machinegun and destructive-device offenses.
- U.S. officials say a special operation in Venezuela resulted in the capture and removal of Maduro and Flores, with Bondi publicly thanking the military and President Trump for the mission.
- Bondi stated both defendants will face trial in U.S. federal court, with the charged offenses carrying potential sentences ranging from decades in prison up to life.
- The filings build on a 2020 SDNY case that portrays Maduro as leading the “Cartel de los Soles” with alleged coordination with FARC-linked actors to move large quantities of cocaine toward the United States.
- Regional pushback surfaced quickly as Mexico’s government rejected the U.S. intervention, and a briefing at Mar-a-Lago was scheduled to provide further details.