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The sentence against Hugo Carvajal, known as 'El Pollo' and former director of the Military Intelligence Directorate of Venezuela, was postponed this Thursday without a new date set, thus facing another delay in his judicial process, as confirmed by a spokesperson for the Southern District of New York Prosecutor's Office.
According to CNN, this is the second significant postponement: the original sentence was scheduled for February 23, 2026, but was delayed due to the temporary closure of the court caused by a winter storm in the northeastern United States.
Carvajal pleaded guilty in June 2025 to four federal charges, including conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine into the country.
The lawyer Renato Stabile, with experience in high-profile federal drug trafficking cases, told CNN that the repeated delays suggest possible cooperation: "Multiple delays could indicate, though not confirm, that there is an agreement or ongoing negotiations. If Carvajal is cooperating and his sentencing proceeds, that would be highly unusual."
The defense attorney for Carvajal, Robert Feitel, told CNN that he had no comments on that possibility but shared with the outlet a letter that the former general sent to Donald Trump in December 2025, approximately one month before Maduro's capture in Caracas.
In the document, Carvajal presents himself as a witness willing to reveal the secrets of chavismo: "For many years, I was a high-ranking member of the Venezuelan regime. I was a three-star general trusted by both Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro... Today I am in a prison in the United States because I voluntarily pleaded guilty to the charges against me: a conspiracy of narcoterrorism. I write to atone, speaking the whole truth, so that the United States can protect itself from the dangers I witnessed for so many years."
In the letter, Carvajal claims that the plan to use cocaine as a geopolitical weapon was proposed by the Cuban regime to Hugo Chávez in the mid-2000s and executed through the Cartel de los Soles under the leadership of Maduro and other senior officials: "The drugs that reached your cities through new routes were not the result of isolated acts of corruption nor the work of independent traffickers; they were deliberate policies coordinated by the Venezuelan regime against the United States."
The former intelligence chief also describes espionage operations with Russia and claims to have warned Maduro about the risks of allowing a Russian listening post on La Orchila island: "I was present when Russian intelligence arrived in Caracas to propose to Hugo Chávez the interception of undersea internet cables that connect much of South America and the Caribbean to the United States. In 2015, I warned Maduro that allowing Russian intelligence to build and operate a secret listening post on La Orchila island would eventually lead to American bombings. He ignored me."
Carvajal also links chavismo to the Tren de Aragua and other criminal structures: "The regime has provided weapons, passports, and impunity for these terrorist organizations to operate freely from Venezuela against the United States."
The cooperation of the former general holds direct significance as a potential witness in the trial against Maduro, who was captured on January 3, 2026, in Caracas by American forces and is currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, facing charges of narcoterrorism in the same court.
The White House responded to CNN regarding the case: "Nicolás Maduro orchestrated many crimes against the United States, including the sending of drugs and terrorists to our country to kill Americans. Fortunately, President Trump’s Department of Justice arrested Maduro for his numerous wicked and illegal actions, and he is now awaiting justice in the Southern District of New York."
Neither the defense nor the Department of Justice have publicly confirmed whether Carvajal is cooperating, and attorney Feitel noted that he is unsure if Trump has read the letter.
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