Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores face new US torture charges in court

Ousted Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are scheduled to appear in a Manhattan federal court on October 15 to respond to a new indictment. The couple faces allegations of conspiring to torture political opponents, a significant expansion of the existing criminal case brought against them by United States authorities.

The additional charges were filed on October 8. Previously, Maduro and Flores had entered pleas of not guilty regarding accusations that they abused their positions of power to facilitate the shipment of cocaine by drug traffickers. Legal representatives for the pair have stated that they also deny the new allegations of torture.

The proceedings are set to take place before US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, with the arraignment scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m. EDT. Prosecutors from the Manhattan US Attorney’s office contend that Maduro orchestrated the torture of opposition politicians and military personnel as a means of maintaining his grip on power in Venezuela.

According to the indictment, one specific incident occurred in 2014, when Maduro allegedly directed officials to kidnap military personnel to extract information regarding potential dissidents. The court documents claim that when some detainees remained defiant, Maduro instructed officials to "squeeze them harder."

The indictment further alleges that Flores was present during the planning of these actions. Prosecutors assert that she agreed with the proposed strategy and dismissed an alternative suggestion to gather intelligence through the infiltration of opposition groups.

Maduro, 63, and Flores, 70, were taken into custody by the US military during a raid in January that was ordered by President Donald Trump. Following their capture, they were transported to New York to face the ongoing criminal proceedings.