Armed motorcycle gangs loyal to Venezuela’s regime have seized control of Caracas streets, targeting citizens suspected of supporting the U.S.-led capture of Nicolás Maduro, the New York Post reports. Eyewitness accounts and videos obtained by The Post and other outlets reveal these pro-government thugs, known as Colectivos, forcing traffic to a halt during rush hour while brandishing Russian-made automatic rifles. According to four local sources contacted between Monday and Tuesday, the masked militants set up makeshift checkpoints, ordering motorists to hand over their phones and car keys for inspection.
The escalating situation has left many Venezuelans fearful and uncertain about what comes next. “The situation is very tense,” one resident told The Post. Another, a local journalist, said several reporters are now in hiding, afraid of being detained or tortured in Caracas prisons.
A Venezuelan shop owner reportedly told The Telegraph that the situation is unpredictable, with armed groups present and guerrilla activity already in Venezuela.
Overnight gunfire and what appeared to be anti-aircraft fire echoed through the capital, according to CNN. Government officials later claimed their forces had merely shot at unidentified drones and that “no confrontation occurred.” Yet, video shared with The Post appears to show Vice President Delcy Rodríguez’s government distributing weapons to regime-aligned civilian militias known as milicianos.
Rodríguez, who assumed the role of interim president after Maduro’s capture, has imposed a nationwide state of emergency. Public celebrations of the U.S. operation have been outlawed. Security forces were ordered to arrest anyone suspected of aiding or applauding Maduro’s downfall. According to The Post, so far, fourteen journalists — including eleven working for international outlets — have been detained. Authorities have also been authorized to search citizens’ cellphones for any signs of pro-U.S. or anti-regime sentiment.
Venezuela’s National Press Union condemned these actions, reporting that officials searched reporters’ phones and equipment. The group shared in a statement, “It is not possible to move towards a democratic transition while political persecution, censorship, arbitrary imprisonment, and the systematic violation of fundamental rights persist. Freedom of expression, the right of access to information, and the right to work are not concessions of political power, but fundamental human rights, enshrined in the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and in the international treaties signed by the State.”
The statement added that such repression has crippled journalistic work, stifled public discourse, and denied citizens access to accurate information.
The deployment of the Colectivos, widely believed to be under the command of Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello — a key Maduro ally with a $50 million U.S. bounty for drug trafficking — signals the regime’s desperation to retain control. In one video, militiamen can be heard chanting, “Always loyal, never traitors,” beside Cabello.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured by U.S. special forces late Saturday and flown out of Venezuela to face narcoterrorism charges. The operation followed a months-long campaign targeting suspected drug-smuggling operations in the Caribbean. Both have pleaded not guilty in federal court in New York, with Maduro defiantly insisting he remains the “president of my country.”
