Does a viral image show an "official photo" of Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro after he was captured by the U.S.? No, that's not true: Lead Stories didn't find any evidence that the picture originated from government websites or elected officials. The image showed two unusual rows of windows in the background, a pattern that did not appear in photographs of any vessel or aircraft used to transport Maduro to New York City.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here and here) published on X on January 3, 2026. It opened:
FOTO OFICIAL DE MADURO TRAS SER CAPTURADO. SE LO LLEVARON EN PIJAMA.
As translated by Google Translate to English, the caption reads:
OFFICIAL PHOTO OF MADURO AFTER BEING CAPTURED. THEY TOOK HIM AWAY IN HIS PAJAMAS.
This is what the image shared in the post looked like on X at the time of writing:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at x.com/codiguillos)
The About This Image tab on Google, however, did not show any credible media organizations, government websites or verified accounts of public officials as an initial source of the image:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of the About This Image tab at google.com)
On January 3, 2026, President Donald Trump posted a different image (archived here) said to be showing Maduro in U.S. custody:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post at truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump)
The ship carrying Maduro doesn't have two rows of windows (archived here) seen in the background of the image reviewed in this fact check:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of page at jifco.defense.gov/Media/Multimedia)
When Maduro was then transferred to a plane that landed at Stewart Airport in Orange County, New York, that aircraft didn't have two rows of windows, either, as seen in the news footage here and here:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of video at youtube.com)
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of video at youtube.com)
After that, Maduro was transported to New York City by a helicopter, not another plane:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of video at youtube.com)
