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Ex-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro returns to New York court over torture indictment

Associated Press reports Maduro and Cilia Flores face a rewritten indictment alleging a state-sponsored torture campaign; they are expected to plead not guilty.

Updated Oct 15, 2026 · 20:15 UTC9 reports

The short version

  • Associated Press reports former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are due in New York federal court Thursday.[Associated Press]
  • The rewritten indictment adds torture allegations to an earlier drug trafficking case, alleging a state-sponsored campaign that tortured scores of victims, including three Americans.[Associated Press]
  • The indictment alleges Maduro personally recommended torture methods and that Flores helped develop the repressive system; Maduro denies wrongdoing.[Associated Press]
  • Key unknown: whether the immunity argument will succeed, since attorneys seek dismissal of the drug case on that basis.[Associated Press]

Key facts

  • Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores are scheduled to return Thursday to a New York federal courtroom on a rewritten indictment.[Associated Press]
  • The rewritten indictment adds torture charges to a drug trafficking indictment brought months earlier against the couple.[Associated Press]
  • The indictment alleges a state-sponsored campaign of repression that tortured scores of victims, including three Americans.[Associated Press]
  • Maduro and Flores were expected to plead not guilty to the added charges.[Associated Press]
  • The U.S. military seized Maduro and Flores from their Caracas home in a nighttime raid in January.[Associated Press]
  • Maduro served as Venezuela's president from 2013 until his capture in January, has been under International Criminal Court investigation over alleged crimes against humanity, and has denied wrongdoing.[Associated Press]

What remains uncertain

  • The torture allegations are unproven indictment allegations; Maduro denies wrongdoing and no finding has been reported.[Associated Press]
  • Whether the immunity argument will lead to dismissal of the earlier drug case is unresolved; the attorneys' position is an argument, not a ruling.[Associated Press]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.