From within the Caracas stronghold all the way to a Manhattan courtroom: Maduro's seizure through pictures as well as maps.
The US state their military operation to capture the South American nation's president took many weeks of planning, but the moment Donald Trump issued the command to commence, "Operation Absolute Resolve" was completed in approximately 150 minutes.
The unexpected early-morning assault on Saturday signified a never-before-seen event within contemporary international relations and resulted in the detention for Nicolás Maduro and his spouse, Cilia Flores de Maduro.
Captured by troops from an elite American military force while they attempted to flee inside a fortified safe room, the two are currently detained in a detention centre in New York and face drug trafficking and terrorism charges.
The Early Morning Assault on Fuerte Tiuna
As the sun rose on Saturday, the magnitude of the military operation in Caracas, the nation's capital, was clear.
Images from Fuerte Tiuna, a huge army installation in which top government officials reside, show destroyed buildings and charred, smoking vehicles.
The location was this base where the president and first lady were captured, a senior political figure Nahum Fernández stated.
Just Moments Earlier - The President Issues the Order
The mission began with reports of blasts at approximately 2 AM local time (06:00 GMT).
American forces disabled electricity across the capital, Trump later described, calling it "dark and deadly".
The objective was to disable the nation's air defences and open up the way for US military helicopters to reach the target.
Our evaluation was that we successfully kept totally the advantage of surprise," the top general remarked.
Targeted sites included the base, a port and an airfield. Pictures depict the complex engulfed in flames, with huge flames visible from a great distance.
Venezuelans have described how American choppers flew low over Caracas, heading for the military base.
A number of the aircraft came under fire, but managed to continue flying, military leaders stated.
"It was a lot of weapons fire," the President added.
The Lightning-Fast On-the-Ground Operation
After landing, troops from an elite special operations unit, sprang into action.
They entered the facility at 02:01 local time, and the Maduros "gave up" without resistance, as per reports.
However, further information emerged. They tried to escape into a safe place, referred to as a heavily fortified bunker.
"The safe place is all steel, and he wasn't able to make it inside because our guys were so fast.
"It was a very thick door, a very heavy door," the President told reporters. "He made it the entrance. He was unable to close it."
However, even assuming they had managed to get into the safe room, forces could have breached it in approximately "47 seconds".
From Caracas to New York City
Now in US custody, Nicolás Maduro and his wife were moved some 2,100 miles, to Manhattan.
They were taken by air out of Caracas via chopper, and taken to a US warship, a warship stationed off the coast. The team was back "over the water" by 04:29.
It was on the ship that an iconic image from the entire mission was captured - the president in handcuffs, wearing ear protectors and a type of blindfold resembling dark sunglasses.
From the USS Iwo Jima, his initial stop was at the American naval installation at Guantánamo Bay.
The Maduros were then flown on a government plane to a military airfield in New York, and then via helicopter into New York City.
Facing Justice in US Territory
On Saturday, a video was released showing the detainee inside the federal drug agency's headquarters in the city.
The couple are presently detained in a detention centre within the city.
They face charges including conspiracy to commit drug-related terrorism and cocaine trafficking, possession of machine guns and explosives, and plots to possess such weapons and destructive devices to use against America.
"They will soon face the full wrath of the US legal system on American soil in American courts," the Attorney General declared.
Footage shows the leader's entry in US and journey to detention.
