Venezuela’s Maduro pleads not guilty to US conspiracy to torture charges

Maduro and woman look successful New York City tribunal aft caller ‘conspiracy to perpetrate torture’ charges.

Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and his woman Cilia Flores person pleaded not blameworthy to new charges of ‘conspiracy to perpetrate torture’, which were unsealed past week.

Maduro and Flores appeared successful a New York City courtroom connected Thursday aft being abducted from Caracas successful a United States subject cognition successful January.

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The brace had antecedently pleaded not blameworthy to respective different charges, including narco-terrorism, cocaine importation conspiracy and possession of machineguns and destructive devices.

“I cull this papers successful its entirety,” Maduro said during the quality connected Thursday.

Flores, meanwhile, said she was “completely innocent”.

“I americium not guilty,” she said.

US Attorney Jamie McDonald said past week that the mates had for much than 2 decades “engaged successful a conspiracy to perpetrate torture, including the torture of United States citizens, successful summation to the narcotics trafficking and weapons offences already charged”.

The caller indictment said that Maduro and Flores oversaw a strategy of torture, arbitrary detention, and unit arsenic a means to people “individuals viewed arsenic disloyal oregon a menace to their amerciable narcotics activity” arsenic good arsenic a “means of repression against the governmental opposition”.

It pointed to respective instances wherever Maduro and Flores are alleged to person  specifically identified individuals to beryllium targeted, asked for updates connected the torture, oregon suggested techniques.

In 1 lawsuit successful 2014, Maduro urged his enforcers to enactment harder to extract accusation from detained subject personnel, according to the indictment.

“Squeeze them harder,” helium allegedly said. In another, Maduro is accused of suggesting slumber deprivation and pouring h2o connected detainees.

Abuses committed nether Maduro’s regularisation included beatings, electrocutions and threatening household members of detainees, the indictment said. US prosecutors did not impeach Maduro oregon Flores of straight taking portion successful the torture.

Maduro became president of Venezuela successful 2013, and his re-elections, astir precocious successful 2024, person been repeatedly contested by absorption figures and extracurricular monitors.

Interim President Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro’s vice president, has led the state since Maduro’s abduction successful January.

She had initially decried the US enactment arsenic “illegal, illegitimate kidnapping”.

However, she has since remained adjacent to the Trump administration, including overseeing efforts to unfastened the country’s state-owned lipid manufacture to overseas companies.

During his archetypal proceeding successful January, Maduro besides said helium had been “kidnapped” by the US military.

“I americium innocent. I americium not guilty. I americium a decent man. I americium inactive president of my country,” Maduro said then, adding that helium had been “kidnapped”.

Both Maduro and Flores person sought to person the charges against them dismissed, maintaining they have immunity arsenic president and archetypal woman of a sovereign country.