NEW YORK, July 22, (V7N) – Venezuela's ousted president Nicolas Maduro is set to appear before a New York court Wednesday, his third public hearing since US commandos captured him in a stunning nighttime raid on his Caracas compound in January.
The former leader, 63, and his wife Cilia Flores have been held in a Brooklyn jail since the operation, awaiting trial on drug trafficking, firearms, and other charges. American commandos snatched the pair on January 3 in a lightning operation combining naval, air, and ground forces, deposing the strongman who had led Venezuela since 2013.
In a court filing late Tuesday, prosecutors and defense lawyers proposed a June 2027 trial date, which Judge Alvin Hellerstein could confirm at Wednesday's procedural hearing. The United States in April allowed Venezuela to pay for Maduro's and Flores's legal defense, something previously barred by US sanctions, after the couple sought dismissal of their cases on grounds that blocking funding violated the US Constitution's right to counsel.
Maduro has declared himself a "prisoner of war" and pleaded not guilty to four counts: "narco-terrorism" conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices.
Venezuela is now led by Maduro's former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, while the United States effectively controls the country's oil exports, with proceeds going into special accounts overseen by Washington.
END/WD/RH/
