AP
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The Trump administration doubled the fee for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s arrest by $50 million, accusing him of being one of the world’s biggest narcotic traffic and collaborated with the cartel to kill the cocaine he added to fentanyl to the United States.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, Maduro will not escape justice and will be held responsible for his sly crimes,” Attorney General Pam Bondy said Thursday in a video announcing his compensation.
Maduro was indicted in Manhattan Federal Court in 2020 during the first Trump presidency, along with several close allies in federal charges of narcoterrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine. At the time, the US offered a $15 million reward for arrests. It was later raised to $25 million by the Biden administration. This is the same amount that the US provided for the capture of Osama bin Laden following the attack on September 11, 2001.
Despite his great bounty, Maduro remains entrenched after denialing the US, the European Union, and several Latin American governments that denounced reelection in 2024 as fakes and recognized his opponents as Venezuela’s officially elected president.
Last month, the Trump administration signed a contract to secure the release of 10 Americans in the capital Caracas in exchange for Venezuela, who was deported to El Salvador under Trump’s immigrant crackdown, to score a score for immigrants who were deported to El Salvador. Shortly afterwards, the White House reversed the course, allowing oil producer Chevron to resume drilling in Venezuela after being previously blocked by US sanctions.
Bondi said the Justice Department seized more than $700 million in assets related to Maduro, including two private jets, and nearly 7 tons of seized cocaine was directly traced to the left-wing leaders.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Ivan Gill issued a statement characterizing the compensation as “pathetic” and accused the bond of orchestrating “crude political propaganda.”
“We’re not surprised. Where did it come from? Just like someone who promised Epstein’s nonexistent “secret list” and was caught up in scandal due to political favor,” Gill said the same person the Justice Department mentioned after facing the face after facing the last month. “Her show is a joke and a desperate distraction from her own misery.”
