Nicolás Maduro heads back to a US court, fighting charges as Venezuela
moves on without him
[March 26, 2026]
By MICHAEL R. SISAK, JENNIFER PELTZ and REGINA GARCIA CANO
NEW YORK (AP) — Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro returns to a
New York courtroom Thursday as he seeks to have his drug trafficking
indictment thrown out over a geopolitical dispute over legal fees.
Maduro’s lawyer contends that the U.S. is violating the deposed leader’s
constitutional rights by blocking Venezuelan government funds from being
used to pay his legal costs.
It’s the first time that Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, will be in
court since a January arraignment at which he protested their capture by
U.S. military forces and declared: “I am not guilty. I am a decent man,
the constitutional president of my country.” Flores has also pleaded not
guilty.
Both remain jailed at a detention center in Brooklyn, and neither has
asked to be released on bail. Judge Alvin Hellerstein has yet to set a
trial date, though that could happen at the hearing.
Maduro, 63, and Flores, 69, continue to enjoy some support in Venezuela,
with murals and billboards across the capital, Caracas, demanding their
return. But while Maduro's ruling party remains in power, he has slowly
been erased from the government of Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela's acting
president.
Rodríguez has replaced senior officials including Maduro’s faithful
defense minister and attorney general, reorganized agencies, appointed
ambassadors and eliminated tenets of the self-proclaimed socialist
movement that has ruled Venezuela for more than two decades.
She has even shaken up state television, which had been dominated by
Maduro’s hourslong evening appearances. Rodríguez favors much shorter
appearances without the musical acts to which her predecessor often
danced.
Venezuela has also reestablished diplomatic relations with the U.S.,
which in 2019 cut ties with Maduro's government and recognized the
then-head of the National Assembly, a member of the opposition, as the
country's legitimate leader. The U.S. has eased economic sanctions on
Venezuela’s crucial oil industry and also dispatched a chargé d’affaires
to Caracas.
But even that may not be enough to spare Maduro and Flores from having
to foot their own legal bills.
[to top of second column]
|
In a court filing last month, Maduro lawyer Barry Pollack said the
U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which
administers sanctions, flip-flopped on a decision to let Venezuela
pay for his legal fees.
The office approved the arrangement Jan. 9, he said, but then
rescinded it without explanation less than three hours later.
In a written declaration filed with the court, Maduro argued that he
is “entitled to have the government of Venezuela pay for my legal
defense.”
Prosecutors responded that the U.S. government had authorized Maduro
and Flores to use personal funds to pay their legal fees but would
let them do so from a fund controlled by a sanctioned government.
Maduro said in his declaration that he is unable to afford his
defense. To qualify for a lawyer at U.S. taxpayer expense, he would
have to show he is too poor to pay for it.
Maduro and Flores were seized Jan. 3 in a middle-of-the-night raid
on their Caracas home.
A 25-page indictment accused him and others of working with drug
cartels and members of the military to facilitate the shipment of
thousands of tons of cocaine into the U.S.
Maduro and his wife are accused of ordering kidnappings, beatings
and murders of those who owed them drug money or undermined their
trafficking operation. That included the killing of a drug boss in
Caracas, the indictment said. If convicted, they face life in
prison.
Post-Maduro, everyday life for most Venezuelans remains the same.
Many public sector employees earn just about $160 per month, while
the average private sector worker makes about $237. Last year the
annual inflation rate soared to 475%, according to Venezuela’s
central bank, putting the cost of food and other essentials beyond
the reach of many.
___
Garcia Cano reported from Caracas.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
