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The capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro was “not just about drugs,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in her first interview about the case. military operation on “Hannity” Monday.
Maduro and other defendants could face charges elsewhere, Bondi said.
“Nothing is out of the question,” Bondi told Fox News host Sean Hannity. “These people need to stay behind bars. They are responsible for the loss of so many lives, and they are not street drug dealers. They are drug traffickers.”
On Monday, Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty narcoterrorism and other charges brought in federal court.
The Justice Department says Maduro provided “Venezuelan diplomatic passports to drug traffickers and facilitated diplomatic cover for planes used by money launderers to repatriate drug proceeds from Mexico to Venezuela.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro greets his supporters during a rally in Caracas, December 1, 2025. (Pedro Mattey/Anadolu via Getty Images)
A man who had a brief exchange with Maduro in Manhattan court told Fox News that the dictator declared himself a “prisoner of war” and compared himself to Jesus.
“I am innocent, I am not guilty,” Maduro told the court. “I am an honest man. I am still president of my country.”
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Some Democrats have criticized the military operation as a violation of state sovereignty, in comparison to former President George W. Bush’s actions in Iraq.
Meanwhile, Bondi insisted “Operation Absolute Resolve” was “well within the bounds” of the President. Donald Trumpof constitutional authority in response to criticism.
Those escorted off the plane were carrying Maduro, his wife, after Operation Absolute Resolve, under the cover of darkness. (Do)
“It was a function of law enforcement to arrest the individuals charged in Venezuela,” Bondi explained. “Our army achieved a flawless and flawless execution.”
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She went on to stress that Saturday’s covert operation “saved countless lives.”
“The president saved thousands, countless lives tonight,” Bondi said. “But he also protected Americans from ADD [Tren de Aragua] members that Maduro let into our country, forced into our country. »
Captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, appear with their attorneys Barry Pollack and Mark Donnelly during their arraignment in federal court in New York, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (Jeanne Rosenberg)
The attorney general listed several murder victims of Venezuelan gang members, including Laken Riley, 22, and Jocelyn Nungaray, 12.
“It’s horrible and it’s going to stop,” she vowed.
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While Trump said the United States will temporarily “rule” VenezuelaMaduro’s allies in the government have disputed this claim.
The Venezuelan dictator and his wife are due to appear in court again on March 17.
