Two photos of Venezuela’s deposed dictator Nicolás Maduro flashing “peace” signs were published on Sunday in what is reportedly described as the first known glimpse of the detained socialist inside a New York prison since his arrest in January.
Maduro, long wanted by U.S. authorities on multiple narco-terrorism charges, was arrested alongside his wife Cilia Flores during a U.S. law enforcement operation in Caracas on January 3. Since then, the pair has remained detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn.
The new pictures of the ousted dictator were published through a four-part series of posts on Maduro’s official X (formerly Twitter) account as well as Telegram.
In the photos, a noticeably thinner Maduro is seen flashing “peace” signs while wearing a gray sweatsuit with white sneakers. At press time, it remains publicly unknown who published the photos on Maduro’s account. Maduro’s son, Nicolás Maduro Guerra, published the same photos and text on his personal X account.
“Small gift of love and hope,” the first message read. “I’m sending these photos as a small gift to all my grandchildren, to all the children, and to all the kind-hearted people who love us.”
“I want you to know that we stand strong, with our hearts filled with your love, that love that reaches us in the form of prayer, constant action, solidarity, and genuine support,” the second message read. “Thank you so much for every word, every gesture, and every blessing.”
“Enjoy this little gift with joy and hope. Cilia and I send you our love forever, with all our hearts and with our faith in God intact,” a third post read.
The four-part series of posts concludes with a message featuring a quote from the Bible.
“As the Apostle Paul says: ‘But in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us’ (Rom 8:37). We will remain strong, calm, and confident: God is with us. God will provide. Venezuela will be reborn,” the text read.
The two images notably feature an alleged timestamp of “June 25, 2026” at “18:05.” The claimed timestamp would purportedly place the two photos as being taken roughly 24-hours after a devastating magnitude 7.2 and magnitude 7.5 doublet earthquake struck Venezuela, leaving over 6,500 dead.
The AFP news agency said it had attempted to contact the detention centre to find out if the photos were authentic and had been authorised, but did not receive a response immediately.
The alleged June photos were also published hours after President Donald Trump announced a historic oil deal with Venezuela that to control more than 65 billion barrels of the country’s proven oil reserves — a move that would more than double the United States’ oil reserves and “substantially lower gas prices for all Americans.” On Sunday, President Trump further detailed that the new deal will help America refill its strategic national reserves after the administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden “virtually” emptied the reserves.
Following a joint proposal between the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office and the deposed dictator’s legal team, the drug trafficking trial against Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores is set to begin on June 1, 2027.