Aug 7, 2025 - Politics & Policy

Trump admin offers $50M reward for arrest of Venezuelan leader Maduro

Rebecca Falconer

Man with dark hair and mustache, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro, wearing a suit, multicolored tie, gold chain, and a yellow, blue, and red sash with white stars, raising his right fist. — Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas earlier this year. Photo: Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images

U.S. officials doubled a reward for the arrest of Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro from $25 million to $50 million on Thursday.

The big picture: Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the increased reward in a video posted to X that accused the Venezuelan leader of using criminal gangs including Tren de Aragua (TDA) and the Sinaloa Cartel "to bring deadly drugs and violence" into the U.S.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio in an online statement said that Maduro has for over a decade "been a leader of Cartel de los Soles, which is responsible for trafficking drugs into the United States."
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil on Telegram called the Trump administration's announcement "the most ridiculous smokescreen ever seen" and said Venezuelan officials "repudiate this crude political propaganda operation."

Zoom out: Trump administration officials have long sought to tie the Maduro regime to drug cartels, invoking the wartime authority of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport undocumented Venezuelan immigrants.

U.S. officials announced drug trafficking charges against the Venezuelan leader during the first Trump administration.

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Trump admin offers $50M reward for arrest of Venezuelan leader Maduro

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