Cilia Flores, Venezuela’s first lady, captured with Nicolás Maduro and faces U.S. charges

People reports Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, first lady Cilia Flores, were captured by U.S. forces in early January 2026 and will face charges in U.S. court related to alleged drug-related crimes.

Flores, born Oct. 15, 1956, in Tinaquillo, studied criminal law at a private university and worked part-time at a police station, per Reuters. A former lawyer and longtime politician, she once served as attorney general and as president of the National Assembly, according to The New York Times, and has been regarded as a significant influence and adviser within Maduro’s administration. She and Maduro met in the 1990s and married in July 2013; she is a mother of three, per Reuters.

President Donald Trump confirmed in a Jan. 3 statement on Truth Social that Maduro and Flores had been captured amid "large-scale strikes," and he accused them of drug trafficking and other abuses. Per CBS News, Maduro faces four U.S. charges, including narco-terrorism and cocaine importation conspiracies and weapons-related counts, while Flores is accused of brokering a meeting between a major trafficker and the head of Venezuela’s National Anti-Drug Office and of accepting thousands of dollars in bribes; both will now face those charges in U.S. court.

Key Topics

Politics, Cilia Flores, Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela, Narco-terrorism, Cocaine Importation