US doubles bounty on Venezuela’s President Maduro to $50m over drug trafficking charges
The United States government has doubled the reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to $50 million, citing his alleged role in international drug trafficking.
The announcement was made on Thursday by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, who described Maduro as “one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world” and a threat to U.S. national security.
“Today, the Department of Justice and State Department are announcing a historic $50 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Nicolás Maduro,” Bondi said in a video posted on social media.
The U.S. first indicted Maduro and several senior Venezuelan officials in 2020 during President Donald Trump’s administration.
The charges, filed in a federal court in New York, accuse them of participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy and leading a drug trafficking ring known as “The Cartel of the Suns.”
The group allegedly coordinated with the Colombian rebel group FARC to ship hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States over a 20-year period.
According to the Justice Department, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has seized 30 tons of cocaine connected to Maduro and his associates, including nearly seven tons allegedly tied directly to the Venezuelan leader.
Bondi also said Maduro had collaborated with criminal groups such as Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua and Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel.
Since September 2024, U.S. authorities have seized more than $700 million in assets linked to Maduro, including two Venezuelan government aircraft.
“Yet Maduro’s reign of terror continues,” Bondi said, affirming that under President Trump’s leadership, Maduro would be held accountable for his actions.
The Venezuelan government dismissed the U.S. announcement as “pathetic” and “ridiculous.”
Relations between Washington and Caracas have been strained for years.
The U.S. does not recognize Maduro as the legitimate president of Venezuela, following what it has called fraudulent elections in 2018 and most recently in July 2024, when the State Department said Maduro falsely declared himself the winner despite evidence to the contrary.
US doubles bounty on Venezuela’s President Maduro to $50m over drug trafficking charges
