WASHINGTON (Realist English). The US government has increased to $50mn its reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Nicolás Maduro, escalating pressure on the Venezuelan president over long-standing allegations of involvement in drug trafficking and narco-terrorism.
In a joint announcement on Thursday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Attorney-General Pam Bondi accused Maduro of acting as a central figure in the Cártel de los Soles — a criminal network alleged to facilitate the trafficking of cocaine into the United States.
“For over a decade, Maduro has led the Cártel de los Soles, which is responsible for smuggling deadly narcotics into our country,” Rubio said in a statement. Bondi added that Maduro uses foreign criminal organisations, including Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa cartel, and the cartel of the same name, to move drugs and violence across borders. She also claimed the US Justice Department had seized multiple tonnes of cocaine tied to Maduro’s network.
The move revives a 2020 US indictment, which charged Maduro and other top Venezuelan officials with narco-terrorism, drug trafficking and weapons offences. Maduro has consistently rejected the charges, calling them politically motivated.
The upgraded reward follows a series of developments that have complicated US–Venezuela policy. Last month, the Trump administration authorized Chevron to resume oil production in Venezuela, a step aimed at stabilizing the country’s economy — and widely seen as a setback for Rubio, who has long advocated a hardline stance against Maduro’s government.
That decision came on the heels of a prisoner exchange between Washington and Caracas: ten US citizens held in Venezuela were released, while 250 Venezuelans deported to El Salvador were allowed to return.
Venezuela’s democratic opposition condemned Chevron’s licence as a “lifeline” to the regime. A similar permit granted by the Biden administration had previously expired in May.
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s economy remains in crisis. According to the independent Venezuelan Finance Observatory, annual inflation hit 229% in May, and the bolívar has lost nearly 70% of its value against the dollar since October 2024.
Responding to the US announcement, Foreign Minister Yván Gil dismissed the bounty as “the most ridiculous smokescreen we have seen”. Maduro himself, who inherited power after Hugo Chávez’s death in 2013 and was sworn in for a third term in January, has faced widespread international condemnation for claiming victory in a 2024 election widely seen as fraudulent.
The US and its allies recognise opposition candidate Edmundo González as the legitimate winner, citing verified tally sheets from polling stations. On the day of Maduro’s latest inauguration, the Biden administration had already raised the reward to $25mn. The Trump team has now doubled it again.
Following the disputed election, Maduro launched a crackdown on dissent, targeting protesters, opposition leaders, and even economists who released critical data. “Maduro has strangled democracy and failed to show any evidence of electoral victory,” Rubio said. “The United States does not recognise him as the president of Venezuela.”
