Maduro captured Venezuela dictator charged with drug trafficking says Bondi
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The capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro “isn’t just about drugs,” U.S. Attorney Pam Bondi said Monday on “Hannity” in her first interview about the military operation.
Maduro and other defendants could face charges elsewhere, Bondi said.
“Nothing is possible,” Bondi told Fox News host Sean Hannity. “These people should stay behind bars. They are responsible for the loss of so many lives, and these are not street-level drug dealers. They are drug traffickers.”
On Monday, Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, did not admit his guilt narco-terrorism and other charges in federal court.
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Justice Department says Maduro provided ‘Venezuelan diplomatic passports’ drug traffickers and facilitated diplomatic protection for planes used by money launderers to send drug proceeds from Mexico back to Venezuela.”
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro greets his supporters during a rally in Caracas on December 1, 2025. (Pedro Mattey/Anadolu via Getty Images)
A man who had a brief meeting with Maduro in a Manhattan courtroom told Fox News the dictator told Fox News. He declared himself a “prisoner of war” and compared himself to Jesus.
“I am innocent, I am not guilty,” Maduro said in court. “I’m a decent man. I’m still the president of my country.”
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There are some Democrats He criticized the military operation compared to former President George W. Bush’s actions in Iraq, it is seen as a violation of state sovereignty.
Meanwhile, Bondi insisted “Operation Absolute Resolve” was “entirely appropriate” for the President Donald TrumpConstitutional authority in response to criticism.
It is believed that the people who were taken out of the plane were carrying Maduro, his wife, in the dark after Operation Absolute Resolve. (WNYW)
“In Venezuela, it was the job of law enforcement to arrest people who were accused,” Bondi explained. “Our military did this flawlessly, flawlessly.”
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He stressed that Saturday’s undercover operation “saved countless lives.”
“The President saved thousands, countless lives tonight,” Bondi said. “But it also protected Americans from TDA [Tren de Aragua] “The members that Maduro allowed to enter our country forcibly entered our country.”
Captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores appeared at the hearing in federal court in New York City on Monday, January 5, 2026, with their lawyers Barry Pollack and Mark Donnelly. (Jane Rosenberg)
The attorney general listed several murdered victims of Venezuelan gang members, including 22-year-old Laken Riley and 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray.
“This is terrible and it will stop,” he vowed.
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While Trump says this USA will temporarily “rule” VenezuelaMaduro’s allies in the government disputed this claim.
The Venezuelan dictator and his wife will appear in court again on March 17.
