The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has significantly altered its legal posture against deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, quietly dropping long-standing allegations that he led a structured criminal organisation known as the 'Cartel de los Soles' (Cartel of the Suns).
The shift, revealed in a revised indictment unsealed following Maduro's dramatic capture by US special forces on 3 January, marks a departure from years of rhetoric by the Trump administration. While Maduro still faces grave federal charges — including narco-terrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation — prosecutors have pivoted away from the specific claim that he sat atop a formal drug cartel.
