U.S. says Venezuela can pay for Nicolás Maduro and his wife's defense

Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York say the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has issued amended licenses authorizing defense attorneys for Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores de Maduro to be paid by the Venezuelan government.

The move clears a major hurdle in the case, eliminating the risk of lengthy delays over funding disputes and the possibility of U.S. taxpayers footing the bill for their defense.

This development comes a month after a hearing where prosecutors argued Maduro had “plundered Venezuela’s wealth and should not be able to use its money for legal fees. Maduro’s attorney, Barry Pollock, countered that the U.S. government was improperly his client's ability to fund his legal defense. “He is entitled to use those resources to defend himself,” Pollack said.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein appeared amenable to the defense argument, suggesting he could dismiss the case if Maduro was unable to secure funds for his legal representation.

In a joint letter filed late Friday, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton outlined strict conditions governing any such funds: they must have become available after March 5, 2026, and cannot derive from restricted foreign government deposit accounts. The government maintained that the newly issued licenses resolve the dispute that had prompted the defendants to seek dismissal, and the defense has since withdrawn those motions without prejudice.

Both sides are asking the court to schedule a status conference in approximately 60 days and to pause the speedy trial clock. The delay, they argue, will give prosecutors time to turn over evidence and allow defense attorneys to review discovery materials and consider pretrial motions — a request to which all defendants have consented.

Maduro and his wife were captured on January 3 during a nighttime raid in Caracas carried out by U.S. forces. They were flown to New York City, where they were arraigned two days later on charges including drug trafficking. Both have pleaded not guilty.

According to a federal indictment, Maduro and his alleged co-conspirators spent decades working alongside some of the world’s most violent drug traffickers and corrupt regional officials to funnel large quantities of cocaine into the United States. He is currently being held in an enhanced-security unit at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.