The first photos taken of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro since his abduction and transportation to the U.S. have been released online.
In one of the photos, a seated Maduro, surrounded by DEA agents, can be seen flashing two thumbs up at the camera. In two other photos, he is being escorted by a large number of DEA agents in a perp walk following his arrival at Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York.
Maduro was then transported to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, where he will await trial. He is facing charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-importation conspiracy, and weapons offenses.
Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, and son, Nicolás Maduro Guerra, are also facing charges. Flores, who was taken alongside her husband, underwent a medical check when the couple arrived in the U.S.
A video posted by the official @RapidResponse47 X account shows Maduro being escorted by DEA agents in an indoor facility. The 63-year-old can be seen wearing a hoodie, sweatpants, sandals with socks, and a beanie, and carrying a bottle of water. He appeared surprisingly calm as he told onlookers: “Goodnight” and “Happy New Year.” The account added the caption, “Perp walked” to the video.
Additional footage obtained by TMZ showed Maduro shortly after his arrival in New York, directing peace signs at the camera as he was escorted during his perp walk.
Maduro was taken from Caracas in a covert operation Saturday morning that involved Delta Force, the military’s elite counterterrorism unit. Venezuelan officials have said that at least 40 Venezuelans were killed as a result of the airstrikes that accompanied the incursion.
President Donald Trump boasted of his successful operation, telling the hosts of Fox & Friends that he treated it like entertainment.
“I watched it literally like I was watching a television show,” Trump said. “If you would have seen the speed, the violence. You know they say that. ‘The speed, the violence.’ They use that term. It was um, it just was an amazing thing. It was an amazing job that these people did.”
Trump watched the entire operation unfold from a situation room at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. The president, who was joined by members of his Cabinet, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and State Secretary Marco Rubio, announced his abduction of the foreign leader via a Truth Social post early Saturday morning.
