Maduro’s first public photo released 8 months after imprisonment

Eight months after former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was detained in a US military operation and imprisoned in the United States, a photograph of him has surfaced publicly for the first time. However, what has drawn the most attention is the timing of the release: the photographs emerged just two days after US President Donald Trump announced what he described as a historic agreement with Venezuela.

According to Reuters, the photographs were posted on Maduro’s social media account on X and show him inside the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York. These are the first published photographs of Maduro in custody since US forces detained him and took him from Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, in January. In the photographs, Maduro can be seen standing in front of a plain wall wearing a grey tracksuit and white sneakers. He appears noticeably thinner and more frail than before.

According to a report by Fox News, Maduro released the photographs as a symbol of hope for his family and supporters. He said that he and his wife, Cilia Flores, remain “strong, calm and confident” and that Venezuela would rise again.

In his message, Maduro wrote, “I am sending these photographs as a ray of hope for all the great people who love us, my grandchildren and all the beloved little ones. Know that we have still not broken; carrying your love in our hearts, we continue to stand strong. That love gives us the strength here to continue our prayers, unity and struggle.”

He further wrote, “Receive this small gift with joy and hope. Cilia and I, with unwavering faith in God, will always remain by your side.” Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, is also being held in New York on similar drug-trafficking charges.

Notably, although the photographs were posted on social media on Sunday morning, the time indicators visible in them show that they were taken on June 25. Just a day earlier, more than 6,500 people were killed in two powerful earthquakes that struck northern Venezuela.

The Trump administration has detained Maduro and his wife in the United States on charges of conspiracy to traffic cocaine. Both have maintained that they are innocent. If convicted, they could face life imprisonment. Their trial in a New York court is expected to begin in June 2027.