How cocaine smuggling through Latin America really works

Former Venezuelan leader, Nicolás Maduro, appeared in a New York court yesterday. He’s facing drug-trafficking and weapons charges after the U.S. abducted him and his wife in an explosive operation over the weekend. But is there any credibility to the drug-trafficking accusations? And what does the cocaine supply chain look like in 2026?<br /><br />Today on the show, tracing cocaine’s journey from the Andes to the streets of U.S. cities.<br /><br /><strong>Further reading: </strong><br />Ioan Grillo – <a href="https://www.ioangrillo.com/books/" target="_blank">El Narco</a><br /><br /><strong>Related episodes: </strong><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/2026/01/03/nx-s1-5665743/venezuelas-economic-descent-updated" target="_blank">Venezuela’s economic descent (Updated)</a><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/03/20/705259623/why-are-venezuelans-starving" target="_blank">Why Are Venezuelans Starving?</a><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/05/16/1099240553/lessons-from-a-former-drug-dealer" target="_blank">Lessons from a former drug dealer</a><br /><br /><em>For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at </em><a href="http://plus.npr.org/" target="_blank"><em>plus.npr.org</em></a><em>.</em> <em>Fact-checking by </em><a href="https://www.npr.org/people/1200794832/cooper-katz-mckim" target="_blank"><em>Cooper Katz McKim</em></a><em> and </em><a href="https://www.npr.org/people/1268825622/sierra-juarez" target="_blank"><em>Sierra Juarez</em></a><em>. Music by </em><a href="https://dropelectric.bandcamp.com/" target="_blank"><em>Drop Electric</em></a><em>. Find us: </em><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@planetmoney" target="_blank"><em>TikTok</em></a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/planetmoney/" target="_blank"><em>Instagram</em></a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/planetmoney" target="_blank"><em>Facebook</em></a>, <a href="https://www.npr.org/newsletter/money" target="_blank"><em>Newsletter</em></a><em>.</em><br /><br />See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>