Ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro is back a New York City courtroom today for a hearing. Follow here for the latest.
back in a New York court today,Maduro’s attorney said last month he will need to withdraw from the case if the US doesn’t allow the government of Venezuela to pay his legal fees. The Maduros and Venezuelan government are both sanctioned by the US, meaning anybody seeking payment needs to obtain a license to avoid violating US sanctions laws.
The ousted Venezuelan leader and his wife, Cilia Flores, have pleaded not guilty to drug and weapons charges. The two wereThat took place two days after they were captured by US forces in a daring operation in Venezuela’s capital. Maduro, whose comments to the court were translated to English, accused the US government of abducting him from his home in Caracas and insisted he was still president of Venezuela. “I am innocent. I am not guilty of anything that is mentioned here,” Maduro said when asked how he would plea. “I am a decent man.”The ousted first lady had bandages on her forehead and right temple when she entered the courtroom. Her attorney said she would need a physical evaluation and potential treatment for “significant injuries” sustained during the “abduction.” Last month, lawyers for Maduro and Flores asked a judge to throw out narco-terrorism charges, arguing the defendants’ constitutional rights were violated when the US government refused to grant the lawyers licenses to receive legal payments from the government of Venezuela. Federal prosecutors later asked a judge to deny the request. They also raised what will likely become another thorny legal issue in the case: whether Maduro and his wife are legitimate leaders of Venezuela and what benefits or protections they would be entitled to receive.that the US government is interfering with his ability to defend against narco-terrorism related charges and the case should be dismissed. Judge Alvin Hellerstein initially set the hearing to give lawyers for Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores de Maduro time to review evidence and sketch out a schedule for legal motions and potentially set a trial date. In a twist in the already unusual case, Maduro’s attorney, Barry Pollack, said last month he will need to withdraw, if the US doesn’t allow the government of Venezuela to pay his legal fees.in early January in a stunning overnight US military and law enforcement operation and brought to New York to face charges. Pollack said the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control granted and then revoked a license permitting the Venezuelan government to pay his legal fees. The Maduros and Venezuelan government are both sanctioned by the US so anybody seeking payment needs to obtain a license to avoid violating US sanctions laws.
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