Deposed Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro appeared in a New York court before Judge Alvin Hellerstein, on January 5, 2026, to face narco-terrorism, drug trafficking conspiracy, and weapons charges, days after a dramatic U.S. military operation captured him and his wife, Cilia Flores, in Caracas. According to reports, Maduro was shown escorted alone to the court, and questions were raised about the whereabouts of his wife, however reports suggest that Flores will also appear in the same courtroom.
Maduro and Flores were detained in Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center following a surprise raid in Venezuela that marked one of the most significant U.S. interventions in Latin America in decades.
“Nicolas Maduro Moros, the defendant, now sits atop a corrupt, illegitimate government that, for decades, has leveraged government power to protect and promote illegal activity, including drug trafficking,” the 25-page indictment alleges.
The indictment further reads that, “This cycle of narcotics-based corruption lines the pockets of Venezuelan officials and their families while also benefiting violent narco-terrorists who operate with impunity on Venezuelan soil and who help produce, protect, and transport tons of cocaine to the United States.”
The U.S. indictment alleges that Maduro “led a state-sponsored cocaine trafficking network” that conspired with notorious cartels including Mexico’s Sinaloa and Zetas, Colombia’s FARC, and Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua to flood the United States with cocaine. These charges carry potential life sentences.
Maduro deposed and US will run Venezuela
President Donald Trump defended the unprecedented operation, signalling broader ambitions for U.S. influence in the country. Trump had previously said that the U.S. would “run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” and that American oil companies would invest heavily in Venezuela’s energy industry.
In describing the military operation that removed Maduro from power, Trump framed it as both a law-enforcement and strategic action, arguing it would stop drug flow and help restore Venezuela’s oil sector. “We’re going to get the oil flowing the way it should be,” he said, emphasising economic as well as security motives.
In court, Maduro’s appearance was tightly controlled, and it remains unclear whether he or his wife secured legal representation in time.
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