From that Caracas 'fort' all the way to the Manhattan courtroom: The Venezuelan leader's capture in pictures and maps.

The US claim their military operation to capture Venezuela's president took months of planning, yet the moment the US President gave the command to launch, the mission dubbed "Absolute Resolve" was completed in about 150 minutes.

The unexpected early-morning strike on Saturday signified a never-before-seen event within contemporary international relations and resulted in the arrest for Nicolás Maduro along with his wife, Cilia Flores.

Seized by troops belonging to an elite US army unit while they tried to escape inside a heavily secured safe room, the couple are currently being held in a detention centre in New York and face narco-terrorism charges.

A Early Morning Assault against the Military Complex

At sunrise that morning, the magnitude of the military operation in Caracas, the nation's capital, was clear.

Pictures from the vast military base, a huge military complex in which top government officials live, show destroyed buildings and charred, smoking vehicles.

The location was this base where the president and first lady were apprehended, Venezuelan ruling party leader a party official reported.

Hours Earlier - The President Gives the Order

The mission started with reports of blasts around 02:00 local time (06:00 GMT).

American forces disabled electricity to the city, the President later described, describing it as "dark and deadly".

The objective was to disable Venezuela's air defences and clear the way for American assault helicopters to get to Fuerte Tiuna.

Our evaluation was that we had maintained totally the element of surprise", the top general stated.

Targeted sites included the compound, a maritime facility and an airport. Pictures depict the complex on fire, with massive fires visible from a great distance.

Residents have described how American choppers flew at low altitude above the city, en route to Fuerte Tiuna.

A number of the aircraft were shot at, however were still able to fly, officials said.

"It was significant weapons fire," Trump noted.

A Rapid On-the-Ground Operation

After landing, forces from an elite special operations unit, moved quickly.

They entered the facility just after 2 AM local time, and the Maduros "gave up" without resistance, as per accounts.

But, more details were provided. They tried to escape into a safe place, described as a military "fortress".

"The safe place was constructed of steel, and he wasn't able to make it inside as our personnel were so fast.

It featured an extremely heavy door, a very heavy door," Trump told reporters. "He made it the entrance. He was unable to close it."

But even if they had managed to get into the safe room, forces could have blown it open in about "under a minute."

From Caracas to Manhattan

Currently under American detention, Nicolás Maduro and his wife were transported some 3,400 kilometers, to Manhattan.

They were flown from the capital via chopper, and transferred to a US warship, a warship positioned off the coast. The operation was completed "over the water" by 04:29.

Aboard the vessel where one of the defining pictures from the entire mission emerged - the president shackled, with hearing protection and a type of blindfold that looked like dark sunglasses.

From the USS Iwo Jima, his initial stop was to the US Navy base in Cuba.

The Maduros were then flown via official aircraft to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York, and then via helicopter into New York City.

Facing The Legal System in American Soil

That same day, a video emerged depicting the detainee at the federal drug agency's main office in New York.

The couple are presently detained in a detention centre in the city.

They have been charged with conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism and import cocaine, owning machine guns and destructive devices, and plots to acquire machine guns and bombs to use against America.

They are set to encounter the complete force of the US legal system in the United States within US courtrooms," the Attorney General proclaimed.

Video documents the leader's entry into American and journey into custody.