Nicolás Maduro, the deposed Venezuelan leader, made a peace sign and gave a thumbs-up as he was escorted into a notorious New York City jail where he will remain until his trial. The former president arrived at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center on Saturday, shortly after being apprehended by U.S. authorities in Caracas, Venezuela’s capital.

Despite facing serious narcoterrorism charges from the U.S. government, Maduro seemed unruffled. Clad in a hoodie, he was handcuffed and led into the detention center, which is infamous for its poor conditions and for housing other high-profile detainees.

Among those potentially sharing the facility with Maduro are alleged hitman Luigi Mangione and music mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs. The jail previously held Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted of sex trafficking, before she was moved to a less restrictive prison.

The former leader donned a hoodie as he was led handcuffed into the notorious detention center which has a reputation for squalid conditions and other high profile inmates.

Potential cellmates at the institution include accused assassin Luigi Mangione and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs. Sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell was previously held at the facility but has since been transferred to a more cushy prison.

US Army Delta Force soldiers snatched Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in the early hours of Saturday before extraditing them on drug trafficking charges.

They landed by helicopter in Manhattan on Saturday evening, after earlier making stops at airfields in upstate New York and Puerto Rico.

He was transported to a DEA office in downtown Manhattan for processing before transfer to the prison. 

As US officials escorted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro out of a cavalcade of white vans, he flashed onlookers a thumbs up

Maduro appeared to be calm and in good spirits throughout the hectic day of his arrest

The president was booked in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn where he will await his trial

They arrived there Saturday via helicopter and motorcade before 9pm.

The high-profile center is known for ‘inhumane’ and ‘barbaric’ conditions, Axios reports.

Judges have previously condemned the federal prison and even commuted the sentences of inmates housed there due to the rough conditions. 

CNN reported the Metropolitan Detention Center to be cold and riddled with rats.

Maduro will reportedly be held there as he awaits trial. His initial hearing could begin in the next 36 hours. 

Earlier in the evening, Maduro was taken to be booked at the US Drug Enforcement Office, where he was expected to be fingerprinted.

In footage of the president being escorted through the offices, he appeared relaxed as officers on either side walked him down a hallway. 

Maduro even wished law enforcement ‘Happy New Year’ as he passed.

His arrest came after US forces struck Caracas amid accusations from Trump that Venezuela has been flooding the US with drugs and gang members.

In earlier footage at the US Drug Enforcement Administration, Maduro wished officers a ‘Happy New Year’ as he shuffled down the hallway 

Maduro was seized following a raid on his compound in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday. Pictured: DOJ officers leave the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn

The strike on Venezuela left around 40 civilians and military personnel dead, an official told the New York Times. 

No US casualties have been reported but there were an undisclosed number of injuries among US troops, all of whom are reportedly in stable condition. 

Trump has alleged that Maduro is the leader of the Cartel de los Soles (Cartel of the Suns) drug trafficking operation.

He stated that the US would take control of Venezuela for the foreseeable future.

The Venezuelan Supreme Court, however, tapped Vice President Delcy Rodriguez to ‘guarantee the administrative continuity’ of the country. 

Rodriguez has been critical of Maduro’s capture and has called on the US to release him. 

She called his seizure a ‘kidnapping’ and claimed it violated international law. 

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and wife Cilia were both seized by a US military unit in the early hours of Caracas. Trump said Saturday afternoon that both will face criminal charges in New York City 

But the dictator’s capture sparked jubilation from Venezuelan migrants living outside of their home nation on Saturday.

Hundreds took to the streets of cities, including Santiago in Chile, to celebrate the ouster of a leader seen as a corrupt authoritarian accused of destroying the economy of his oil-rich country while silencing dissent. 

The atmosphere appeared altogether more muted in Caracas. 

Locals were photographed lining up outside supermarkets amid fears Maduro’s ouster will lead to even greater economic uncertainty. 

Shortly before Saturday’s press conference, the president shared an undignified photo of Maduro in a tracksuit taken after his capture.

He said the Venezuelan president’s wife will also be charged, but did not offer further details. 

Maduro was photographed wearing a heavy black plastic eye mask and ear muffs over his ears in an apparent bid to keep his location a secret from him.

He was clad in a gray tracksuit and clutched a plastic water bottle. It is unclear if this is what Maduro was wearing when he was taken or if it was given to him by US forces.