Mock House, CIA Source And Special Forces: The U.S. Operation To Capture Maduro

WASHINGTON, January 3 (Reuters) – At 4:21 a.m. Saturday morning, President Donald Trump sent a message on the Truth Social platform: The United States had carried out a daring mission to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.

The action came as a surprise, but planning for one of the most complex U.S. operations in recent memory had been in the works for months and involved detailed rehearsals, according to people familiar with the matter.

Elite US troops, including the military’s Delta Force, created an exact replica of Maduro’s vault house and they practiced how to enter the strongly fortified dwelling.

The CIA had a small team on the ground as of August that could provide information about Maduro’s lifestyle that made it perfect for capturing him, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Two other sources told Reuters that the intelligence agency has a presence close to Maduro and will monitor his movements and pinpoint his exact location as the operation progresses.

Once the pieces fell into place, Trump approved the operation four days ago, but military and intelligence planners suggested he wait for better weather and less cloud cover. At 10:46 p.m. EST on Friday, Trump took the final step in the operation known as Operation Absolute Resolve, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine told reporters.

Trump watched a livestream of the events at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, surrounded by advisers.

How the hours-long operation unfolded is based on interviews with four sources familiar with the matter and details disclosed by Trump himself.

“I’ve done some pretty good things, but I’ve never seen anything like this,” Trump said on Fox News just hours after the mission was completed.

The Pentagon has overseen a massive military buildup, sending an aircraft carrier, 11 warships and more than a dozen F-35 jets to the Caribbean. In all, more than 15,000 troops have descended on the region for what U.S. officials have long described as anti-drug operations.

Trump senior aide Stephen Miller, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe formed a core team that worked on the issue for months with regular — sometimes daily — meetings and phone calls, according to one of the sources. They also met frequently with the president.

Late Friday night and early Saturday, Trump and his advisers met as a series of U.S. planes took off and carried out strikes, including against air defense systems, on targets in and near Caracas, according to a U.S. military official.

Caine said the operation involved more than 150 aircraft launched from 20 bases in the Western Hemisphere, including F-35 and F-22 jets and B-1 bombers.

“We had a fighter jet for every possible situation,” Trump told Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends.”

Sources told Reuters that the Pentagon was quietly moving into the area to refuel air tankers, drones and planes that specialize in electronic jamming.

US officials said the airstrikes hit military targets. Images taken by Reuters at La Carlota air base in Caracas show burnt military vehicles belonging to the Venezuelan anti-aircraft unit.

After the attacks took place, US Special Forces entered Caracas with heavy weapons, including welding machines, in case they had to cut the steel doors where Maduro was located.

Around 1 a.m. EST on Saturday, soldiers arrived at Maduro’s compound in downtown Caracas as gunfire was opening, Caine said. One of the helicopters was hit but was still able to fly.

Social media videos posted by residents showed a convoy of helicopters flying at low altitude over the city.

When they reach Maduro’s safe house The soldiers, along with FBI agents, entered the residence, which Trump described as a “very well-guarded … fortress.”

“They got in and they got into places that were literally impossible to get into, you know, steel doors that were put there for that very reason,” Trump said. “They were taken out within seconds.”

After the soldiers entered the vault houseCaine said Maduro and his wife surrendered. Trump said the Venezuelan leader tried to reach a safe room but could not close the door.

“He became a bum so quickly that he didn’t get into it,” Trump said.

Trump said some US forces were hit but none were killed.

As the operation progressed, Rubio began informing deputies that the operation was ongoing. Notifications began only after the operation began and not before, as is customary for key lawmakers in an oversight role, officials told Reuters.

Caine said the troops were involved in “multiple self-defense conflicts” as they left Venezuelan territory. At 03.20, the helicopters were on the water with Maduro and his wife.

Almost exactly seven hours after Trump announced the operation at Truth Social, he made another post.

This time it was a photo of the captured Venezuelan leader, blindfolded, handcuffed and wearing a gray tracksuit.

“Nicolas Maduro is aboard USS Iwo Jima,” Trump wrote, referring to the amphibious assault ship.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali, Erin Banco, Steve Holland and Phil Stewart; Editing by Don Durfee and Daniel Wallis)