What are the charges against Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro?
January 3, 2026
Ryan Lucas
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, on Aug. 17, 2024.Alfredo Lasry R/Getty Images
Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, face a raft of charges in the United States following President Trump's announcement early Saturday that the U.S. attacked Caracas and took them into custody.
Maduro, Flores and senior Venezuelan officials face charges related to alleged "drug trafficking and narco-terrorism conspiracies," according to an unsealed indictment posted on social media Saturday by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
The indictment alleges that, starting in 1999, the defendants partnered with international drug trafficking organizations to ultimately transport thousands of tons of cocaine into the United States.
Maduro and his wife "will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts," Bondi wrote in an earlier post on X.
The new indictment adds to charges from the first Trump administration, when the U.S. Justice Department announced a federal indictment against Maduro in March 2020.
That indictment alleged that Maduro was the leader of the Cartel de los Soles, and that he and other defendants took part in a narco-terrorism conspiracy with the Colombian guerrilla group known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
Prosecutors said that the Cartel de los Soles was made up of high-ranking Venezuelan officials who abused the Venezuelan people and corrupted the nation's institutions to import large quantities of cocaine into the United States.
According to the 2020 indictment, Maduro helped manage and ultimately lead the Cartel de los Soles, which sought to get rich and flood the U.S. with cocaine, allegedly using the drug as a weapon against the United States.
Prosecutors said that Maduro helped negotiate multi-ton shipments of cocaine, and directed the Cartel de los Soles to provide military-grade weapons to FARC.
He also allegedly coordinated foreign affairs with Honduras and others to facilitate large-scale drug trafficking.
The current Trump administration has ramped up the pressure over the past year. In November 2025, the U.S. designated the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization.
The new indictment released Saturday reiterates these charges and also alleges that Maduro "partnered" with organizations including the Sinaloa Cartel, the Zetas and Tren de Aragua.
Separately, the International Criminal Court has been investigating the Venezuelan government for alleged torture, sexual violence and arbitrary detentions.
This is a developing story, which may be updated.
Nicknamed 'Lady Macbeth' for her ambition and influence, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's wife, Cilia Flores, has long been seen as the power behind the regime in Caracas. With the US capturing Maduro and Flores, her journey from lawyer and TV figure to a part of a narco-terrorism case is under global scrutiny.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been captured by American special forces. (Images: File/Social Media)
India Today News Desk
New Delhi,
Jan 3, 2026
Written By: Sushim Mukul
Ambitious, manipulative, ruthless and complex all at once, Lady Macbeth is one of William Shakespeare's most famous and studied characters. It is because of these traits that many in Venezuela have bestowed the title on President Nicolas Maduro's wife and "first combatant", Cilia Flores. Early on Saturday, the US Delta Force raided the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. Hours later, US President Donald Trump said Maduro and his wife had been captured by American forces following what he described as "large-scale airstrikes".
US attorney general Pam Bondi said Maduro, and his wife, Flores, who were flown out of Caracas and were aboard the USS Iwo Jima, would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York, which she called "the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts".
So, who's Cilia Flores? Why is she called the "Lady Macbeth" and the "first combatant"? What role does she have in the narco-terrorism charges that the US has brought against her?
HOW MADURO'S WIFE, ROSE FROM MODEST UPBRINGING TO POWER
Sixty-nine-year-old Cilia Flores de Maduro was born in 1956 in a small town in Venezuela's Cojedes state. Raised in modest circumstances, she was known in her youth as a "biker girl", according to reports. The label reflects her assertive and unconventional personality. That determination would later shape her entry into law and politics.
Flores was trained as a lawyer, though details of her formal education remain limited in public records. Her professional rise began in the 1990s, closely tied to the ascent of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and the Bolivarian Revolution.
It was the same Chavez, who was Maduro's mentor, whose regime the US tried to topple in 2002.
Written By: Sushim Mukul
Ambitious, manipulative, ruthless and complex all at once, Lady Macbeth is one of William Shakespeare's most famous and studied characters. It is because of these traits that many in Venezuela have bestowed the title on President Nicolas Maduro's wife and "first combatant", Cilia Flores. Early on Saturday, the US Delta Force raided the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. Hours later, US President Donald Trump said Maduro and his wife had been captured by American forces following what he described as "large-scale airstrikes".
US attorney general Pam Bondi said Maduro, and his wife, Flores, who were flown out of Caracas and were aboard the USS Iwo Jima, would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York, which she called "the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts".
So, who's Cilia Flores? Why is she called the "Lady Macbeth" and the "first combatant"? What role does she have in the narco-terrorism charges that the US has brought against her?
HOW MADURO'S WIFE, ROSE FROM MODEST UPBRINGING TO POWER
Sixty-nine-year-old Cilia Flores de Maduro was born in 1956 in a small town in Venezuela's Cojedes state. Raised in modest circumstances, she was known in her youth as a "biker girl", according to reports. The label reflects her assertive and unconventional personality. That determination would later shape her entry into law and politics.
Flores was trained as a lawyer, though details of her formal education remain limited in public records. Her professional rise began in the 1990s, closely tied to the ascent of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and the Bolivarian Revolution.
It was the same Chavez, who was Maduro's mentor, whose regime the US tried to topple in 2002.
CILIA FLORES'S TV, LEGAL CAREER CEMENTED HER ROLE IN POLITICS
Cilia Flores first came into national prominence as a lawyer defending Hugo Chavez after his failed 1992 coup against then president Carlos Andres Perez. As lead counsel on his defence team, she played a key role in securing his release from prison in 1994. It cemented her position within the Venezuelan socialist revolutionary movement.
Beyond the courtroom, Flores also cultivated a public profile through television. She hosted a show that featured beneficiaries of government welfare schemes, helping project the regime's social outreach.
She was also a devotee of Indian spiritual guru Sathya Sai Baba, according to a 2013 report by news agency Reuters. In 2005, while serving as Venezuela's foreign minister, the couple travelled to Puttaparthi in Andhra Pradesh. The couple visited the Prasanthi Nilayam ashram, where they reportedly had a private audience with spiritual leader Sathya Sai Baba. Photographs from the visit on social media show Maduro seated on the floor.
CILIA FLORES'S POLITICAL PLUNGE. SHE PRESIDED OVER VENEZUELAN PARLIAMENT TOO
Following Chavez's election in 1999, Flores's political career accelerated.
She served as a member of the National Assembly between 2000 and 2012.
In 2006, she became the first woman to serve as President of the National Assembly, succeeding Nicolas Maduro. She held the post until 2011.
She later served as Attorney General from 2012 to 2013 under both Chavez and Maduro.
In 2017, amid political unrest, Flores resigned from the National Assembly to join the controversial Constituent National Assembly tasked with rewriting the constitution, where she remained until early 2026.
Within the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), Flores emerged as a central organiser. She played a key role in Chavez's Tactical Command for the Revolution.
Following Chavez's election in 1999, Flores's political career accelerated.
She served as a member of the National Assembly between 2000 and 2012.
In 2006, she became the first woman to serve as President of the National Assembly, succeeding Nicolas Maduro. She held the post until 2011.
She later served as Attorney General from 2012 to 2013 under both Chavez and Maduro.
In 2017, amid political unrest, Flores resigned from the National Assembly to join the controversial Constituent National Assembly tasked with rewriting the constitution, where she remained until early 2026.
Within the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), Flores emerged as a central organiser. She played a key role in Chavez's Tactical Command for the Revolution.
WHY MADURO'S WIFE IS CALLED LADY MACBETH
Flores met Nicolas Maduro in the 1990s through their shared political network under Chavez. Their relationship developed over time, and they married in July 2013, shortly after Maduro assumed the presidency following Chavez's death from cancer.
Both had divorced previous spouses. Maduro has frequently praised Flores in public, referring to her as his closest adviser and often appearing alongside her at public events. This projection of a united leadership image, earned Flores the title "first combatant".
Within Venezuela, Flores has earned the nickname "Lady Macbeth", a reference to her perceived ambition and influence behind the scenes.
Critics, however, described her as a "puppet master" or compared her to House of Cards character Claire Underwood.
Political scientist John Polga-Hecimovich has described Flores as a committed ideologue who has helped soften Maduro's public image and broaden his appeal, according to a 2019 report by the US-based Fox News.
CILIA FLORES'S NARCO LINKS, CHARGES OF NEPOTISM
During her tenure in power, Flores faced repeated allegations of nepotism, with reports claiming as many as 16 relatives held posts in the National Assembly. Flores dismissed these accusations as a smear campaign.
Her son, Walter Jacob Gavidia Flores, has drawn scrutiny for reported luxury travel despite having no visible source of income. Maduro's son from a previous relationship, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, has also received government appointments.
Flores's family has also been linked to drug trafficking cases.
In 2015, her nephews, Efrain Antonio Campo Flores and Francisco Flores de Freitas, whom she helped raise, were arrested by the US Drug Enforcement Administration in Haiti while attempting to smuggle 800 kg of cocaine into the United States.
They were convicted in 2016 and sentenced to 18 years in prison. They reportedly admitted that the scheme was intended to generate funds to help keep their family in power. Though they carried Venezuelan diplomatic passports, they did not have immunity. They were released in 2022 as part of a US-Venezuela prisoner swap.
Flores, in 2016, was indicted in the Southern District of New York on narco-terrorism charges, alongside Maduro. The allegations were consistently denied by the couple. Maduro has publicly defended his wife, calling the charges politically motivated.
In 2018, the US Treasury sanctioned Flores along with Maduro's inner circle, accusing them of corruption and propping up an authoritarian regime. Canada, Panama and Colombia later followed with their own sanctions.
On Saturday, Trump claimed that American forces captured Maduro and Flores following what he described as large-scale airstrikes on Caracas. Flores, long seen as the power behind the throne, now is at the centre of what could become the most consequential chapter in Venezuela's political history. She, along with Maduro, will be tried in New York on narco-terror charges.
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