Nicolás Maduro was captured in a fast, U.S.-led special forces raid on his compound in Caracas after months of escalating military and political pressure, and he was then flown out of Venezuela to a U.S. warship and onward to New York to face criminal charges.

How Maduro Was Captured

Quick Scoop

After a long campaign of sanctions, covert pressure, and limited strikes framed as anti–drug-trafficking operations, President Donald Trump authorized a surprise overnight operation to seize Maduro directly in Venezuela.

Elite U.S. special operations forces (including Army Delta Force, according to U.S. officials) were sent into Caracas, hit key targets in under half an hour amid multiple explosions, and extracted Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, by helicopter to a U.S. naval vessel waiting offshore.

Lead‑Up and “Legal” Cover

  • Washington had already indicted Maduro and Flores years earlier on narco‑terrorism and drug‑trafficking conspiracy charges, setting up a legal basis to say they were being brought to trial in the U.S.
  • In the months before the raid, the U.S. carried out a series of strikes it said were against drug‑running boats and a loading facility linked to Venezuelan cartels, which in practice built military pressure and tested Venezuelan defenses.

The Nighttime Raid Itself

  • The assault hit Caracas in the early hours, with witnesses reporting at least seven explosions and low‑flying aircraft over the capital and several military sites.
  • Trump later described Maduro’s palace as a heavily guarded “fortress,” saying U.S. troops went into dark, confined spaces facing machine guns and carried “massive blowtorches” to cut through steel if Maduro reached a safe room, which he reportedly failed to do.

Capture and Extraction

  • U.S. forces located Maduro and Flores at or near a military‑linked residence/compound, subdued their security, and took them into custody; at least some Venezuelan civilians and soldiers were reported killed, while Trump said only “a couple of” Americans were injured.
  • The pair were then airlifted by helicopter to a U.S. warship and are being transferred to New York, where U.S. officials say they will face trial in the Southern District of New York on long‑standing indictments.

What Happened in Venezuela After

  • Under Venezuela’s constitution, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez is supposed to assume power, and she publicly condemned the operation as an “imperialist attack” while the government declared a national emergency and called people into the streets.
  • U.S. officials and some allies are signaling that, at least initially, Washington intends to “run the country” or heavily steer its transition, while critics and online forums frame the operation as everything from a long‑planned regime‑change move to a distraction from other scandals.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.