A Maine-based apparel company’s phones have been ringing off the hook after a shackled Nicolás Maduro was snapped wearing one of its hoodies when he was hauled to the Big Apple, the company says.
The ousted Venezuelan dictator wore the Origin attire — in the company’s “Patriotic Blue” shade — in a now-infamous photo of him flashing two thumbs up while surrounded by scores of DEA agents after touching down in New York.
It wasn’t clear how the dictator ended up in the hoodie.
“Probably a DEA agent slipped this hoodie on him and said, ‘You’re gonna feel the fabric of freedom on American soil.’ That’s my assumption. I’m taking the liberty to assume,” quipped Origin founder Peter Roberts in a video statement.
Nicolas Maduro sports a light blue Origins hoodie at the time of his capture. via REUTERS
Origin founder Peter Roberts discusses the large amount of inquiries he’s received over the blue hoodie Nicolas Maduro wore. X / @ORIGINBJJ
“Probably a DEA agent slipped this hoodie on him and said, ‘You’re gonna feel the fabric of freedom on American soil.’ That’s my assumption. I’m taking the liberty to assume,” Roberts said about the “Patriotic Blue” colored hoodie.
“He definitely gave two thumbs up so I think he liked the fabric,” Roberts said of the accused narco-trafficker.
“What I believe happened is they landed in New York. It was cold outside, and they put a hoodie on him.”
The blue Origin hood and Maduro is seen wearing it as he puts his thumbs up for the cameras. X / @ORIGINBJJHere’s the latest on Nicolás Maduro’s capture:
- http://Trump to meet Venezuelan opposition leader, would be 'great honor' to receive her Nobel Peace PrizeTrump to meet Venezuelan opposition leader, would be ‘great honor’ to receive her Nobel Peace Prize
- Trump ‘surprised’ Mamdani ‘hit me’ on Venezuela — but praises NYC mayor’s ‘great personality’
- US capture of Maduro could lead to rise in defense spending: analyst
- Interim Venezuelan president names Maduro’s torture czar as head of security
The CEO said his phone immediately “blew up” when people started noticing the company’s logo. X / @ORIGINBJJThe CEO said his phone immediately “blew up” when people started noticing the company’s logo.
The company — which makes and sells a slew of apparel, training gear and boots – immediately seized on the free worldwide publicity.
“Welcome to America. Unfortunately, our ‘patriot blue’ RTX hoodie won’t be shipping till spring. But they are available for pre-order!” the business wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of Maduro in custody.
The Nike sweatsuit that Maduro was wearing when he was first captured by US forces Saturday appears to be selling out fast in the wake of his arrest, as well.
President Trump had blasted out a photo of Maduro wearing a matching gray Nike Tech sweatsuit shortly after he was blindfolded, cuffed and hauled onto a ship over the weekend.
After going viral and becoming the subject of scores of memes, only a handful of sizes of the fleece zip jacket, which retails for $140, remained available on the company’s website.
