Washington, Jan 4 . The US has released a video showing captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in handcuffs, staging a “Perp-walk” as he was led into custody.
Maduro is set to be transferred from his life of luxury to the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in New York City.
The facility is described as “disgusting” with “horrifying” conditions, known for chronic understaffing, inmate violence, power outages, and squalid living conditions, as reported by CNN. The White House’s official rapid response account posted video of what appeared to be a perp walk by ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. “Perp walked,” Rapid Response 47 wrote above the video, which shows Maduro, in a black hooded sweatshirt, walking down a hallway with a blue carpet labeled “DEA NYD.” Maduro was processed and fingerprinted at the Drug Enforcement Administration office in Manhattan.
Built in the 1990s to combat prison overcrowding, MDC has housed high-profile detainees including singer R. Kelly, “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli, socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, cryptocurrency figure Sam Bankman-Fried, and music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs. Suspected cartel leader Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia was also held there while awaiting trial on murder and drug trafficking charges, CNN reports.
Hours after Maduro and his wife’s capture, Venezuela’s opposition was seen celebrating.
However, President Donald Trump expressed a lack of confidence in opposition leader María Corina Machado, former deputy of the National Assembly, and suggested he would instead work with Maduro loyalist Vice President Delcy Rodríguez. Machado had called for the immediate installation of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as president.
Most Western governments recognise Gonzalez as the legitimate winner of Venezuela’s contested 2024 presidential election.
During the press conference, Trump refused to be in contact with Machado and also declined her role in the post-Maduro government. He said that while she was “a very nice woman,” she “doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country” to lead Venezuela.
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s Supreme Court ordered Vice President Delcy Rodríguez to assume the powers and duties of acting president after the US removed Maduro, citing his “material and temporary impossibility to exercise his functions.”
In a dramatic and unprecedented move, US forces captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, following a large-scale military operation in Venezuela.
The couple arrived in New York on Saturday evening, landing at Stewart Air National Guard Base before being transported by helicopter to the Manhattan office of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). From there, Maduro was transferred to MDC in Brooklyn, where he is being held on drug trafficking and illegal weapons charges. He is scheduled to face trial next week in Manhattan federal court.
The “Operation Absolute Resolve” conducted by the “US Army Delta Force” commandos resulted in the capture of Maduro, marking the “riskiest American military operation” of its kind since US Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan’s Abbottabad in 2011.
US “take control of Venezuela’s future” until a “judicious transition” could occur. Trump also vowed to rebuild Venezuela’s oil industry, noting that American companies would invest in the country’s vast oil reserves. “We’re going to help Venezuela, and we’re going to take care of the oil,” Trump said. “The United States will have a strong presence in Venezuela as it pertains to oil.”
The situation in Venezuela has been tense for years, with hyperinflation, food shortages, and mass emigration contributing to a humanitarian crisis. Maduro’s regime has long faced criticism for authoritarian tactics, but the US operation marks a new chapter in the ongoing conflict.
After the military operation, protests erupted across major US cities. Thousands of Venezuelan-Americans marched in Washington, D.C., New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Boston, with some demonstrations attracting up to 100 people. Many held signs reading “No War on Venezuela” and “US Hands Off Latin America,” protesting US intervention.
“All the United States sees is dollar signs,” said Kameron Hurt, an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Los Angeles. “They don’t see actual human beings. This operation is about oil, not about freeing people.”
Protesters also raised concerns about domestic priorities. “We do not want our public dollars fueling war, and we don’t want our government waging war against the sovereign nation of Venezuela!” the Anti-War Committee in Chicago said.
High-profile criminal defense lawyers are reportedly preparing to represent Maduro as he faces serious federal charges next week. CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig described the case as “high stakes” due to Maduro’s wealth and global attention. “Big-time criminal defense lawyers are always drawn to cases like this,” Honig said. “This is an unprecedented situation, and it will certainly involve unique legal issues.”
In an interview with CBS News, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth defended the operation, saying the US would oversee the political transition in Venezuela, while noting that ultimately, the Venezuelan people would decide their future. “What happens next will be in the hands of the Venezuelans to decide,” Hegseth said. However, he later added, “We are going to control what happens next,” suggesting continued U.S. involvement.
Hegseth also addressed possible troop deployments, confirming that the US remains “poised” to take further action if needed. When asked whether the operation was about oil or freedom, he responded, “Freedom, security, prosperity.”
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