Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, captured in a large-scale U.S. military operation early Saturday, will be held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York, CNN reported.
The couple arrived at Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburgh, New York, around 5 p.m. local time (2200 GMT), according to reports and video footage.
They, along with several others, are set to face charges next week in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, and possession of machine guns and destructive devices, according to an unsealed indictment by the U.S. Department of Justice.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he directly called U.S. President Donald Trump to express opposition to what he described as a “pursuit of regime change violating federal and international law.” Demonstrations were also reported outside the Newburgh base.
Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez demanded the immediate release of the couple during a National Defense Council session broadcast on state television.