Trump Admin Charges Venezuelan President Maduro With Drug Trafficking

The Trump Administration has announced that charges have been filed by the United States Department of Justice against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for drug trafficking.

According to The Hill:

Attorney General William Barr announced Thursday the indictment of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other top officials for crimes related to drug trafficking.

Advertisement

Maduro was charged with narco-terrorism for allegedly attempting to weaponize cocaine by “flooding” U.S. communities with the drug. Thirteen other officials, including a vice president, the chief justice and the minister of defense, were also charged by U.S. attorneys in New York, Washington and Florida.

Barr denied that the U.S. was criminally charging a foreign head of state, which would be an unprecedented move.

He compared Maduro’s indictment to the 1988 indictment of former Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega, which eventually led to the 1989 U.S. invasion of that country.

The United States recognizes opposition leader Juan Guaido as the official leader of Venezuela.