Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York.
The charges, ranging from narco-terrorism conspiracy to cocaine importation, follow the couple’s capture in what President Trump had earlier described as a “large-scale strike.”
“Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York,” Bondi said in a statement posted to X early Saturday morning. “Nicolas Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machineguns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess Machineguns and Destructive Devices against the United States.”
There’s something poetic about a socialist dictator having to face American justice in a city now presided over by a socialist mayor in Zohran Mamdani.
Bondi went on to thank President Trump for bringing Maduro to justice.
“They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts,” she said. “On behalf of the entire U.S. DOJ, I would like to thank President Trump for having the courage to demand accountability on behalf of the American People, and a huge thank you to our brave military who conducted the incredible and highly successful mission to capture these two alleged international narco traffickers.”
Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York. Nicolas Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machineguns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess…
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) January 3, 2026
Maduro Says He’s Ready to Play ‘Let’s Make a Deal’
President Trump surprised the world with an early-morning announcement about the operation that brought Maduro to the United States.
“The United States of America has successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolás Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country,” Trump said on his Truth Social media platform. “This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.”
A news conference is scheduled for 11 a.m. today at Mar-a-Lago.
Trump revealed some details of the capture in an interview with Fox & Friends earlier this morning, stating that Maduro and Flores were taken by helicopter to the USS Iwo Jima while reiterating that they had been indicted.
PRESIDENT TRUMP tells ‘FOX & Friends Weekend’ that Maduro and his wife were first taken to the USS Iwo Jima: “They’re on a ship, and they’ll be heading into New York… They went by helicopter on a nice flight. I’m sure they loved it.” pic.twitter.com/v1FUGPYbTW
— Fox News (@FoxNews) January 3, 2026
“They’ll be heading into New York. The helicopters took them out, and they went by helicopter on a nice flight. I’m sure they loved it, but they’ve killed a lot of people, remember that,” he said. “Even people in their own country. They killed a lot of people to maintain power. He’s a very vicious person.”
Fox News reports that Maduro could make an initial appearance in federal court in Manhattan as early as Monday.
RedState will keep readers posted as new events warrant.
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