A new U.S. indictment has charged former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro with torture, adding to the existing drug trafficking allegations against him. The indictment, announced by U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald, alleges that Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were involved in human rights abuses during his time as president of Venezuela. The charges include allegations of electric shocks, beatings, and asphyxiation carried out at Maduro's behest.
According to the indictment, Maduro signed off on torture methods, sought and received updates on specific victims' treatment, and personally threatened the killing of one prisoner's child as a form of psychological torture. Flores, a former legislator and attorney general, is also accused of helping develop the repressive system and ordering the torture of specific individuals. The couple has pleaded not guilty to the charges and faces potential life sentences in prison if convicted.
The indictment includes allegations of torture carried out by Venezuela's feared DGCIM military intelligence agency, which was headed by one of Maduro's co-defendants, Gen. Hugo Carvajal. Carvajal broke with Maduro years ago, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges in New York, and has offered to testify against his former boss. The indictment mentions that three alleged torture victims were U.S. citizens, who were subjected to various forms of abuse, including electric shocks, beatings, and forced to eat their own vomit.
One of the alleged torture victims, Matthew Heath, a former U.S. Marine corporal from Tennessee, was arrested in Venezuela in 2020 and held in custody for over two years. Heath and another former prisoner won a $300 million default judgment against Maduro and other top Venezuelan officials for overseeing a pattern of torture. Heath described the new charges against Maduro as "incredible" and said it would help prevent the kidnapping of Americans by rogue regimes.
Flores' lawyers have argued that she should be released on house arrest due to her medical problems, which include a possible heart condition, high blood pressure, and permanent scarring from her capture. However, prosecutors have opposed the bail request, citing Flores as an "extreme" flight risk. U.S. District Court Judge Alvin Hellerstein denied Flores' request, noting that she was unwilling to undergo catheterization in jail to determine the cause of her heart problems.
Maduro has been under investigation for years by the International Criminal Court over allegations of crimes against humanity, tied to his crackdown on opponents. He has always denied any wrongdoing. Both Maduro and Flores have been held behind bars in New York since early January, when they were seized from their Caracas home in a middle-of-the-night raid. Outside the courthouse, over a dozen demonstrators chanted slogans and held signs supporting Flores' request for release.
The U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has defended the raid to capture Maduro as a "surgical law enforcement operation." Maduro has called himself a prisoner of war and his capture a kidnapping. The new charges against Maduro have been welcomed by some, including Heath, who said it would bring hope to those who have suffered at the hands of Maduro's regime.
Key points
- Maduro faces new torture charges in the US
- Alleged torture victims included US citizens
- Flores denied release on house arrest due to medical concerns
