Venezuela's President Has Appeared In Court In The US And Pleaded Not Guilty To Drug Trafficking
“I am innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the constitutional president of my country,” Maduro said when he was asked about his plea.
Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro has pleaded not guilty in his first appearance in a US court after he was captured by US forces in Venezuela’s capital Caracas on drug trafficking charges.
On Saturday, Jan. 3, at around 2 am, US forces carried out a “large-scale strike” across Caracas and captured Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, who were flown out of the country to face trial in New York for allegedly overseeing a cocaine-trafficking network with international drug cartels.
Trump said in a press conference on Saturday that the US would “run” Venezuela until it could determine “safe, proper and judicial transition,” adding that some of the biggest American oil companies would enter Venezuela to rebuild its oil industry.
Venezuela is currently home to the biggest oil reserve in the world, larger than that of Saudi Arabia.
The US accuses Maduro, his wife and four other top Venezuelan public officials of working closely with international drug trafficking organizations for the past two decades to ship illicit drugs into the US while enriching themselves, according to the Guardian.
They face four criminal charges: narco-terrorism, cocaine importation conspiracy and possession of machine guns and destructive devices.
Maduro has long denied the allegations, saying they were a mask for imperialist designs on Venezuela's rich oil reserves, according to Reuters.
On Monday, Jan. 5, Maduro was flown by helicopter to Manhattan from Brooklyn, where he is jailed, and then driven to the courthouse in an armored vehicle, with both him and his wife in leg shackles.
During his court appearance, Maduro said he was a “prisoner of war,” adding that he was illegally “captured.”
“I am innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the constitutional president of my country,” Maduro said when he was asked later about his plea.
Maduro’s lawyer said he expects to contest the legality of Maduro’s “military abduction,” adding that Maduro is “head of a sovereign state" and is entitled to privileges and immunities.
However, the US doesn’t recognize Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate head of state, particularly after his disputed reelection in 2024.
Sofia Hou
Kassy Cho
Sofia Hou
