The Metropolitan Detention Center, commonly known as MDC Brooklyn, is a federal detention facility in New York City that has housed some of the world's most high-profile felons.
From now ousted Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro to infamous criminals, the prison's roster includes many notable names.
1. Nicolás Maduro And Cilia Flores
Maduro, 63, ousted and captured by an US military operation last week, is being held, along with his wife Cilia, 69, at New York's Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he awaits federal proceedings on alleged narcotics and related charges.
Two of Flores' nephews were imprisoned in the US in 2015, after they were caught with 800 kg cocaine in Haiti, that they were trying to ship to the US, with financial proceedings to be used, allegedly, to prop up Flores' election campaign.
Their case was initially handled by then US attorney for South Manhattan Preet Bharara. The nephews returned to Venezuela through a prisoner swap.
2. Luigi Mangione
Baltimore-raised Luigi Nicholas Mangione stands accused in the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson, the chief executive of health insurance provider giant UnitedHealthcare.
Though a New York court threw out the terrorism-linked murder allegations against Mangione, he continues to face prosecution for second-degree homicide.
3. Sean Combs
Sean John Combs or Puff Daddy or O Diddy, a prominent figure in American music and entertainment and one of the wealthiest musicians, was imprisoned at the MDC too.
He is currently at Fort Dix, New Jersey, and the singer, who once belted out lines like 'Yo, that love's gon' get ya, m-----f-----, Smoke weed, listening to Sade, I left my pain in Paris, Why can't you see s--- my way?', works in the library of the prison chapel there.
On July 2, 2025, he was convicted on charges related to interstate movement of individuals for prostitution. Later on October 3, 2025, the court handed him a prison term of 50 months, accounting for a year already spent in custody.
4. R Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly, a popular American R&B artist, saw his career collapse following a series of criminal convictions for trafficking in child pornography.
Held initially at the Brooklyn jail, he was handed down a combined prison term of 31 years and moved to a jail in North Carolina.
5. Sam Bankman-Fried
Called the Crypto Poster Boy, Samuel Benjamin Bankman-Fried was found guilty of crypto currency fraud and associated offences in November 2023. He is still at MDC as he awaits the results of his appeal.
6. Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán
The former Mexican cartel boss, who once lorded over the Sinaloa drug empire, was extradited to the US and held in a maximum security area of the Brooklyn detention centre.
Long regarded as the world's most powerful narcotics trafficker, he was allegedly responsible for the death of over 34,000 people before being handed over to US authorities. Condemned to spend the rest of his life in prison, he is currently at ADX Florence Colorado.
7. Michael Cohen
Personal counsel to Donald Trump for more than a decade, from 2006 until 2018, in August that year, he admitted guilt to eight criminal offences, including breaches of campaign finance law, tax evasion and bank-related fraud.
He spent time at MDC and was later transferred to the Otisville penitentionary in upstate New York. He served his sentence and was released from Otisville in 2020 and house arrest in 2021.
8. Ghislaine Noelle Marion Maxwell
The former British social figure was sentenced for child sex trafficking and other offences relating to financier and convicted sex offender the late Jeffrey Epstein.
Initially a prisoner at MDC for around a year, she is now at a Tallahassee jail and due for release in mid-2037.
9. Martin Shkreli
The New York financier, hedge fund founder and entrepreneur was at MDC till he was handed down a seven year prison term for fraud and conspiracy, along with fines totalling up to $7.4 million, a dramatic fall from prominence for the once high-profile businessman.
He was moved to a New Jersey jail and later a Pennsylvania jail and was released in 2022, after serving his sentence.
10. Al Charles Sharpton Jr
A prominent US campaigner for civil rights and social equality, a Baptist clergyman, and a well-known media figure, he is recognised for his work in radio and television. He also established the National Action Network, a leading organisation dedicated to racial justice and advocacy.
He spent 88 days at the Metropolitan Detention Center in 2001 for trespassing when he was protesting against the US military exercises being conducted in Puerto Rico.
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