While many Venezuelans celebrated the capture of socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro, the new government, led by former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, has moved to swiftly crack down on public celebrations and anyone suspected of supporting the U.S. operation.
An order issued Saturday, and published on Monday, has directed the country's police to "immediately begin the national search and capture of everyone involved in the promotion or support for the armed attack by the United States." Even armed civilian gangs known as colectivos have flooded the streets on motorcycles, setting up checkpoints and conducting intrusive searches to hunt down those who backed Maduro’s deposition.
Pro-Maduro motorcycle gang, ‘Colectivos,’ hunting for Trump supporters in Caracas https://t.co/HFMzoAEl9C pic.twitter.com/vkZeeStT8w
— New York Post (@nypost) January 6, 2026
These collectivos are largely controlled by Diosdado Cabello, Minister of Interior, Justice and Peace, who is known for violently suppressing dissent. He currently has a $25 million bounty from the U.S. State Department primarily for his role in corruption and drug trafficking.
#Venezuelan pro-government irregular militias deploy on motorcycles arresting, beating & harassing those believed to be disloyal.
— Emilio T. González, Ph.D. (@emiliotgonzalez) January 8, 2026
Known as “colectivos” they report directly to the feared narco Interior Minister and operate outside the law.
A militarized outlaw State in action. pic.twitter.com/FkOoozrXBm
Colectivos armados del régimen chavista intimidan a los venezolanos en las calles: les piden los celulares y amenazan a periodistas. Además en otros sectores están entregando armas a los colectivos que en Panamá se les conocía como batallones de la dignidad y codepadis. En… pic.twitter.com/wFz8Hkqp2d
— Alvaro Alvarado - Noticias 180 Minutos/ Sin Rodeos (@AlvaroAlvaradoC) January 5, 2026
The National Union of Press Workers of Venezuela also reported that during Rodriguez's inauguration, 14 journalists were briefly detained, and civilians have reported being afraid to leave their homes, for fear that security forces would seize their phones and search them for any sign they supported Maduro's capture.
"The future is uncertain, the Colectivos have weapons, the Colombian guerrilla is already here in Venezuela, so we don’t know what’s going to happen, time will tell," Oswaldo, a 69-year-old Venezuelan shop owner, said.
While Maduro’s capture remains a major milestone in Venezuela’s long struggle for freedom, the machinery of his regime is still firmly in place. Until the security services, armed gangs, and political institutions that sustained his rule are dismantled, Maduro’s removal will mark not an end to repression, but the beginning of a far more uncertain and dangerous transition.