US forces captured Nicolás Maduro in Caracas on January 3, 2026, and transferred him to federal custody in New York to face longstanding narco-terrorism, cocaine importation, and weapons charges. He and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty at arraignment, with a June 2027 trial date set before Judge Alvin Hellerstein. Maduro remains detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn while his defense seeks dismissal on head-of-state immunity grounds; prosecutors countered in early October filings that no such protection applies. Pending pretrial motions, the possibility of acquittal, case dismissal, or negotiated resolution without incarceration supports the near-even split favoring no prison time, while conviction on the most serious counts could result in decades of imprisonment.