The United States government dropped the accusation against Nicolas Maduro that he led the Cartel de los Soles during his court case in New York in 2026.
Posted by Behind the Bastards, Checked
- Sources
- 2 contradict3 support1 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 55%
Behind the BastardsOct 3, 2026
In January 2026 the Justice Department dropped its claim that Cartel de los Soles was an actual organization led by Maduro in a revised indictment at his New York arraignment, per NYT and Yahoo reporting.
What was said
… government had for a long time contended that Nicolas Maduro, Venezuelan president, was the leader of the Cartel de los Soles, even though experts like those of Inside Crime claim it was more like a loose network of cells inside the Venezuelan armed forces. Also, going out of timeline here, but the Us. Government dropped the accusation against Maduro that he led the cartel earlier this year during his court case in New York. Shortly after Trump declared several of these criminal groups FTO's, Hegsef began purging the DOD of any lawyers or commanders who would serve as, quote unquote, roadblocks to Trump's orders, according to The Hill. …
Behind the Bastards · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. A State Department page dated October 2026 states that Maduro helped manage and ultimately lead the Cartel of the Suns, which conflicts with the claim that the accusation was dropped.[2]
Contradicts. The October 2026 superseding indictment still refers to Maduro and Flores as part of an inner circle called the Cártel de Los Soles, suggesting the cartel accusation was reframed rather than fully abandoned.[3]
Supports. The NYT reported on January 5, 2026 that the Justice Department abandoned its claim that Cartel de los Soles was an actual group in a revised indictment, dropping the accusation that Maduro led it.[4]
Supports. Yahoo News reported that at Maduro's January 5 arraignment in New York, the DOJ quietly dropped the claim that he headed the cartel, and a Transcend piece describes the updated indictment as no longer alleging a formal criminal organization.[5][6]
Context. The AP's October 2026 coverage of the rewritten indictment in New York focuses on torture and repression charges and does not address whether the cartel-leadership accusation was retained.[1]
Sources
6 sources: 1 fact-checker, 2 primary, 1 tier 2, 2 not rated
- 1Ex-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro says new torture ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 2Nicolás Maduro Moros (Captured) - United States Department of ...state.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 3Superseding Indictmentjustice.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 4www.nytimes.com › 2026/01/05 › usJustice Dept. Drops Claim That Venezuela’s ‘Cartel de los Soles...nytimes.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 5Pam Bondi Quietly Drops False Claim from Trump That Nicolás ...yahoo.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6TRANSCEND MEDIA SERVICE » The ‘Cartel de los Soles’ Does Not …transcend.org · not rated · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post