Venezuela’s ousted President, Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are expected to face additional criminal charges in the United States over allegations that Americans detained in Venezuela were tortured, a US official said Wednesday.
According to Reuters, the new charges could be filed as early as Thursday, following an investigation into the alleged mistreatment of Americans during Maduro’s 13-year rule.
Maduro and Flores are already facing drug trafficking charges in the US after they were captured by the US military at their home in Caracas on January 3 and taken to New York.
Both have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled to stand trial from June 1, 2027.
A spokesperson for the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office, which filed the existing charges, declined to comment on the possibility of additional charges.
Lawyers representing Maduro and Flores also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Details of the expected charges, including the identities of the alleged victims, were not immediately available.
The possibility of the new charges was first reported by CNN.
During Maduro’s presidency, the United States accused his government of detaining Americans as leverage to secure concessions, including relief from financial sanctions.
Among those detained were five oil executives who were arrested on corruption-related charges and released in 2022 in a prisoner exchange involving two of Flores’ nephews, who had been convicted in the US of drug trafficking.
Two former US Army Special Forces members were also arrested in Venezuela in 2020 over their alleged involvement in a failed operation aimed at removing Maduro from power.
They were released in 2023 in another prisoner exchange.
Since Maduro’s capture, Venezuela has been led by his former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, whose government has increased cooperation with the administration of US President Donald Trump.
Maduro, 63, and Flores, 69, are being held at a federal jail in Brooklyn.
Flores is due in Manhattan federal court on Thursday, where she will seek release from custody before trial on health grounds. Prosecutors are opposing the request.
