From the Caracas 'fort' all the way to the New York court: The Venezuelan leader's capture in images and maps.

The US assert the armed forces mission to capture the South American nation's leader involved months of careful preparation, but when the US President issued the order to launch, "Operation Absolute Resolve" only lasted about two and a half hours.

The unexpected early-morning attack this past weekend signified a never-before-seen incident within contemporary international relations and culminated in the arrest of Nicolás Maduro along with his wife, Cilia Flores de Maduro.

Seized by troops belonging to a top-tier US army unit when they attempted to flee into a heavily secured secure chamber, the two are now being held in a detention centre within New York City and are confronting drug trafficking and terrorism indictments.

The Early Morning Assault on Fuerte Tiuna

With daybreak on Saturday, the magnitude of the armed intervention in Caracas, the nation's capital, was evident.

Pictures from the vast military base, an enormous army installation where top government officials reside, depict destroyed structures and charred, smouldering cars.

It was at this base that the president and first lady were captured, Venezuelan ruling party leader a party official stated.

Just Moments Earlier - Trump Issues the Order

"Operation Absolute Resolve" started amid reports of blasts at approximately 2 AM in Caracas (6:00 Greenwich Mean Time).

The US cut power to the city, the President later described, describing it as "dark and deadly".

The goal was to disable Venezuela's air defense systems and clear the path for American assault helicopters to reach Fuerte Tiuna.

Our evaluation was that we had maintained completely the advantage of surprise," a senior military officer commented.

Strike locations included the base, a maritime facility and an airfield. Images show Fuerte Tiuna engulfed in flames, with huge flames visible from a great distance.

Residents have described the way US military helicopters flew low over Caracas, en route to the military base.

A number of the aircraft were shot at, however managed to continue flying, officials said.

"It was a lot of weapons fire," the President noted.

A Rapid Ground Assault

After landing, forces from an elite special operations unit, sprang into action.

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

But, further information were provided. The Maduros attempted to flee into a safe place, described as a military "fortress".

"The safe place was constructed of steel, and he failed to make it to the door because our guys were too quick.

It featured an extremely heavy entryway, a massive door," the President told reporters. "He made it to the door. He was unable to close it."

However, even assuming they had managed to get into the safe room, forces could have breached it in about "47 seconds".

From the Capital to Manhattan

Currently under American detention, Nicolás Maduro and his wife were moved some 2,100 miles, to New York City.

They were flown from the capital via chopper, and transferred to the USS Iwo Jima, a warship stationed in the Caribbean. The team was back in international waters before 4:30 AM.

It was on the ship that one of the defining pictures from the entire mission was captured - the president shackled, with hearing protection and darkened eyewear resembling dark sunglasses.

After leaving the ship, his initial stop was at the American naval installation in Cuba.

The Maduros were then flown on a government plane to a military airfield in New York state, and then via helicopter to Manhattan.

Confronting Justice in US Territory

On Saturday, footage was released showing Maduro inside the federal drug agency's headquarters in the city.

The couple are presently being held at a federal holding facility in the city.

They have been charged with planning narco-terrorism and import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and plots to acquire such weapons and destructive devices against the US.

They are set to encounter the full wrath of the US legal system on American soil within US courtrooms," a senior legal official proclaimed.

Video documents Maduro's arrival into American and transport to detention.