The United States says it has captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro following what was described as a large-scale U.S. strike on the Venezuelan capital, Caracas.
U.S. President Donald Trump, announcing the development, said Maduro had been taken into U.S. custody and that “further details will follow.”
However, Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez rejected the claim, saying the government is unaware of the whereabouts of President Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. CNN quotes Rodríguez as saying the U.S. attack resulted in the deaths of government officials, military personnel, and civilians across the country.
The Trump administration has long accused Maduro of criminal activity and has sought to prosecute him through the U.S. legal system. During Trump’s first term in 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice charged Maduro in the Southern District of New York with “narco-terrorism,” conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States, and related offenses.
At the time, U.S. officials accused Maduro of leading the so-called “Cartel of the Suns,” allegations the Venezuelan government has consistently denied, calling them politically motivated.
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