Trump Says Secret "Discombobulator" Aided Maduro Capture — Officials Say Multiple Tools Likely Behind Effects

President Donald Trump told the New York Post that the United States used a secret weapon he described as a "discombobulator" during the operation that captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. A senior U.S. official and military analysts say the president is likely compressing several existing capabilities into a single, non‑existent device.

Trump's Claim. "The discombobulator, I’m not allowed to talk about it," Trump said, adding that it "made [enemy] equipment not work" during the capture.

What Officials Say. A senior U.S. official told CNN that Trump may be conflating multiple tools. U.S. forces are reported to have used cyber operations to disable early-warning, radar and other Venezuelan defense networks, and to have employed acoustic measures to disorient personnel on the ground. These combined effects could be described loosely as a single, exotic device.

Directed-Energy Systems. The U.S. military has long developed and occasionally tested a nonlethal directed-energy system called the Active Denial System (ADS). According to military descriptions, ADS projects a pulsed beam of electromagnetic energy that produces an intense heating sensation on exposed skin, encouraging people to move away; the system’s deployment in this operation has not been confirmed.

Unverified Eyewitness Account. A few days after the operation, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt reposted comments attributed to a Venezuelan security guard who said the U.S. "launched something" described as "a very intense sound wave." The quoted witness described severe head pain and nosebleeds; CNN has not independently verified that account.

How the Operation Began. CNN’s analysis of the Jan. 3 mission shows it opened with coordinated strikes that disrupted radar, communications and air‑defense infrastructure to clear routes for U.S. helicopters. Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said more than 150 aircraft — including bombers, fighters and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms — were launched from roughly 20 bases on land and sea.

Strike Tools and Tactics. One expert told CNN the U.S. likely used one‑way attack drones in strikes on Higuerote, a coastal city that houses Venezuelan air‑defense systems. Video from U.S. forces’ entry into the Fort Tiuna military complex contains prolonged gunfire that analysts say is consistent with Direct Action Penetrator MH‑60 Black Hawk helicopters firing 30‑millimeter autocannons.

Remaining Questions. The exact location in Fort Tiuna where Maduro was captured and the full sequence of events after U.S. forces landed there have not been publicly disclosed. Questions remain about whether a single cutting‑edge device was used or whether a combination of cyberattacks, acoustic measures and existing directed‑energy and conventional systems produced the reported effects.

Bottom line: Trump’s "discombobulator" claim has drawn attention, but current reporting indicates the effects described could reasonably stem from a mix of cyber, acoustic and existing directed‑energy capabilities rather than a single, novel weapon.