Daijiworld Media Network - New York
New York, Oct 8: Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores have been charged with conspiracy to commit torture in a new US indictment, adding allegations of human rights abuses to the drug trafficking case they are already facing.
The superseding indictment, unsealed on Thursday in Manhattan federal court, alleges that Maduro authorised torture, arbitrary detention and violence against political opponents and others to maintain his grip on power. Prosecutors allege that the abuses included electric shocks, beatings and asphyxiation.
The indictment also alleges that three US citizens were among the victims of torture. Prosecutors said one American was subjected to beatings and electric shocks during months of imprisonment, another suffered severe injuries requiring hospitalisation, and a third sustained a permanent eye injury after being repeatedly beaten while in detention.
In one case cited by prosecutors, Maduro allegedly ordered the arrest and torture of a Venezuelan military officer in 2013 after suspecting him of plotting a coup. In another case in 2022, an American citizen detained after entering Venezuela was allegedly beaten and subjected to electric shocks after being accused of plotting to assassinate Maduro.
Maduro, 63, and Flores, 69, were captured by US military forces at their Caracas home on January 3 and brought to New York. They have remained in custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn while facing earlier charges of conspiring to send cocaine into the United States. Both have pleaded not guilty to those charges. Their trial is scheduled to begin on June 1, 2027.
The new indictment marks the first time Maduro has faced criminal charges in the United States specifically over allegations of torture, although US officials and human rights groups have for years accused Venezuelan authorities of torturing detainees. Maduro has denied wrongdoing.
The indictment also names Venezuela's military counterintelligence agency, DGCIM, in connection with the alleged abuses. Former DGCIM chief Gen. Hugo Carvajal, who is also a co-defendant in the US case, has pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges and has offered to testify against Maduro, according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, Flores appeared in a US court on Thursday seeking release from jail on medical grounds. Her lawyers have asked that she be placed under house arrest at a New York-area residence with round-the-clock private security, arguing that she has serious heart problems and may require a cardiac procedure.
Her lawyers said Flores has lost about 25 pounds while in custody and has experienced dizziness, shortness of breath and other health problems. They also said she may have suffered a minor heart attack in July and suffered permanent scarring during the US military operation that led to her capture.
US prosecutors opposed her release, arguing that Flores poses an "extreme risk of flight and danger to the public". They said she has received medical treatment, including hospital care when required.
Maduro and Flores have also asked for the criminal case to be dismissed, arguing that they are entitled to immunity as the former leader and first lady of Venezuela. The Trump administration has defended the operation that led to Maduro's capture as a "surgical law enforcement operation", while Maduro has described his capture as a kidnapping.
Flores is also accused of participating in the cocaine importation conspiracy with Maduro. Prosecutors allege that she accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from a major drug trafficker. Her lawyers have maintained that she is not a flight risk and wants to remain close to her husband.