U.S. Doubles Bounty on Venezuela’s Maduro to $50M in Escalating Narco-Trafficking Case
The United States has doubled its bounty on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to a record $50 million, intensifying its pursuit of the embattled leader who faces federal drug trafficking charges. Caracas blasted the move as “pathetic” and “ridiculous.”
Washington, which rejects Maduro’s past two election victories as illegitimate, accuses him of running one of the world’s largest cocaine trafficking networks.
“Today, the Department of Justice and State Department are announcing a historic $50 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Nicolás Maduro,” said US Attorney General Pam Bondi in a video statement. “He is one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world and a threat to our national security.”
The bounty, previously set at $25 million in January, stems from longstanding allegations that Maduro heads the Cartel of the Suns, a criminal network accused of smuggling hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States over two decades, in partnership with Colombia’s FARC rebels designated a terrorist organization by Washington.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil dismissed the US move as “the most ridiculous smokescreen we have ever seen,” declaring on Telegram: “The dignity of our homeland is not for sale. We reject this crude political propaganda operation.”
Maduro, 62, a former bus driver and trade union leader, was first indicted in 2020 during Donald Trump’s presidency alongside several top Venezuelan officials.
The charges include narco-terrorism and large-scale drug trafficking, with US prosecutors alleging ties not only to the FARC but also to Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang and Mexico’s powerful Sinaloa cartel.
According to Bondi, the DEA has seized 30 tons of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates — nearly seven tons allegedly tied directly to him — as well as over $700 million in assets, including two Venezuelan government aircraft, since September last year.
“Yet Maduro’s reign of terror continues,” Bondi said. “Under President Trump’s leadership, Maduro will not escape justice and will be held accountable for his despicable crimes.”
If extradited and convicted, Maduro faces a possible life sentence in the United States. He has previously dismissed the allegations as “spurious” and “false.”
In a related case, Venezuela’s former intelligence chief Hugo Armando Carvajal pleaded guilty in June to US drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges. The Miami Herald reported that Carvajal has offered to hand over documents and testimony directly implicating Maduro.
