KABUL (Pajhwok): Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are expected to face new criminal charges in the United States over allegations that American citizens detained in Venezuela were tortured, a US official said.
According to Reuters, the official, who was briefed on the investigation, said the new charges could be brought as soon as Thursday.
Maduro, who led Venezuela for 13 years, and Flores were captured by the U.S. military at their home in Caracas on January 3 and brought to New York to face drug-trafficking charges. They have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled to go on trial on June 1, 2027.
A spokesperson for the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office, which brought the charges, declined to comment.
Lawyers for Maduro and Flores did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The possibility of new charges was first reported by CNN on Wednesday.
Details of the new charges, including the identities of the alleged torture victims, were not immediately available.
Maduro’s tenure was marked by tensions with the United States. Washington accused his government of detaining Americans as leverage to extract concessions, including relief from financial sanctions.
According to Reuters, Americans whom the United States classified as wrongfully detained during Maduro’s tenure included five oil executives who were arrested on graft charges. They were freed in 2022 in exchange for two of Flores’ nephews, who had been convicted in the United States of drug trafficking.
Others detained included two former US Army Special Forces members who were arrested in Venezuela in 2020 in connection with a failed raid aimed at ousting Maduro. They were freed in 2023 as part of another prisoner swap.
Since Maduro’s capture, Venezuela has been led by his former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, who has increased cooperation with the Trump administration.
Maduro, 63, and Flores, 69, have been held in a federal jail in Brooklyn.
Flores is due to appear in Manhattan federal court on Thursday to ask US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein to release her from jail before trial on health grounds. Prosecutors oppose her release.
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