U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday that American authorities possess what he described as “overwhelming evidence” implicating Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in serious criminal activity, following a dramatic U.S. military operation in Venezuela.
Speaking publicly, Trump said the evidence against the Venezuelan leadership would ultimately be presented in a U.S. court.
“Maduro and his wife were soon face the full might of American justice and stand trial on American soil… But we have people where the overwhelming evidence of their crimes will be presented in a court of law,” he said.
“And I’ve seen it. I’ve seen what we have. It’s both horrible and breathtaking that something like this could have been allowed to take place.”
U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday that American authorities possess what he described as “overwhelming evidence” implicating Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in serious criminal activity, following a dramatic U.S. military operation in Venezuela.
Speaking publicly, Trump said the evidence against the Venezuelan leadership would ultimately be presented in a U.S. court.
“Maduro and his wife were soon face the full might of American justice and stand trial on American soil… But we have people where the overwhelming evidence of their crimes will be presented in a court of law,” he said.
“And I’ve seen it. I’ve seen what we have. It’s both horrible and breathtaking that something like this could have been allowed to take place.”
Earlier Saturday, the U.S. military carried out what officials described as a “large-scale strike” inside Venezuela, resulting in the capture of Maduro.
Attorney General Pam Bondi later released an unsealed indictment outlining sweeping criminal charges that will be pursued in the United States.
Maduro, who took office in 2013 after serving as vice president under Hugo Chávez, is accused of narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices against the United States.
Trump praised the operation that led to Maduro’s capture, saying: “It’s just it was an amazing thing, the amazing job that these people did. There’s nobody else could have done anything like it.”
According to the indictment, Maduro allegedly enriched himself and Venezuela’s “political elites” by working with violent gangs and drug cartels that have built criminal networks across the Western Hemisphere, including within the United States. Prosecutors allege those networks extended into major American cities, including New York.
Six individuals are named as defendants in the case, among them Maduro, his wife, his son, and Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, identified as the leader of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
The indictment states that Maduro “sits atop a corrupt, illegitimate government that, for decades, has leveraged government power to protect and promote illegal activity, including drug trafficking.”
Trump has repeatedly focused his presidency on combating drug cartels and transnational gangs, citing the spread of narcotics such as fentanyl and the resulting rise in overdose deaths in the United States since 2000.
His administration previously designated Tren de Aragua a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
During the same exchange with reporters, Trump was asked whether Colombian President Gustavo Petro should be concerned following the U.S. operation that captured Maduro.
Trump responded by accusing Petro of facilitating cocaine production.
“Well, he has cocaine mills. He has, factories where he makes cocaine, and. Yeah, I think I stick by my first statement.
“He’s making cocaine. They’re sending it into the United States. So he does have to watch his a–,” Trump said.
Petro later issued a lengthy statement condemning the U.S. action in Venezuela, arguing that the operation violated the United Nations charter — a position echoed by several other foreign leaders.
THE THIRD FORCE
