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Brendan Cole
Senior Reporter
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Venezuela’s president Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores will face narco-terrorism charges in the U.S., Attorney General Pam Bondi has said.
Bondi’s announcement on Saturday came after Trump said that the South American country's first couple had been captured following U.S. attacks on Venezuela.
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Why It Matters
Bondi’s announcement signals a potentially lengthy legal process and high profile sentencing of a head of state should he and his wife be convicted.
The charges carry significant statutory penalties and could mean long jail terms.
What To Know
In an X post on Saturday, Bondi said Maduro and his wife had been indicted in the Southern District of New York where they would face charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation conspiracy.
There were also charges related to the possession of machineguns and destructive devices and "conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices against the United States."
Sen. Tom Cotton, a Republican and chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had told him that Maduro was in U.S. custody.
Much remains to be clarified but the charges announced on Saturday suggest there would a significant penalty if they resulted in a conviction.
According to the U.S. Justice Department website, under U.S. code 841, conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than 280 grams of crack cocaine, or more than 5 kilograms of cocaine, carries a possible punishment of no less than ten years and up to life imprisonment and a fine of up to $10 million.
But under the narco-terrorism charges under US Code 960, conviction could see imprisonment of not less than twice the minimum punishment under section 84 according to Cornell Law School, suggesting at least twice the 10 year minimum, or 20 years.
The accusations announced by Bondi and the military attack ordered by Trump have echoes of the invasion of Panama in December 1989 in which dictator Manuel Noriega surrendered. The previous year, Washington had charged Noriega with drug trafficking in a Florida federal court. He was sentenced in 1992 to 40 years in prison after being found guilty of eight counts of drug trafficking and money laundering.
In 2020, Maduro had been previously indicted by the Trump administration in 2020, along with 14 others with narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine and gun charges. Maduro’s wife did not face charges in that indictment.
That 2020 indictment also accuses Maduro of coordinating with the Colombian guerilla group FARC and named him as a leader of Cartel de los Soles, which is described as a Venezuelan drug trafficking network.
What People Are Saying
Attorney General Pam Bondi: "Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York.
Her X post added: "Nicolas Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machine guns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess Machine guns and Destructive Devices against the United States."
Sen. Tom Cotton on X: "I just spoke to (Secretary of State Marco Rubio) who confirmed that Maduro is in U.S. custody and will face justice for his crimes against our citizens."
What Happens Next
The timeframe for the legal process remains unclear but Bondi's statement that Maduro and his wife "will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts" point to a high-profile and potentially protracted legal case in store.
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