In a legal submission, prosecutors say Nicolás Maduro and his wife ‘surely knew’ that the U.S. government did not consider him to be the legitimate president.
Former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, who was captured by the United States military in January, should not be able to use funds from Caracas to defend himself against narcotics trafficking charges, U.S. prosecutors said on March 13.
Last month, Maduro’s lawyer Barry Pollack urged U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein to dismiss the indictment on the basis that the U.S. Department of the Treasury had, without explanation, revoked an exemption to financial sanctions that would have allowed the Venezuelan regime to fund his defense.
Pollack argued that the Treasury Department was interfering with Maduro’s right to counsel under the U.S. Constitution’s Sixth Amendment.
Mark Donnelly, an attorney representing Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, has also asked Hellerstein to dismiss charges against her for the same reason.
Maduro, 63, and his 69-year-old wife are charged, alongside others, including Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, an alleged leader of the Tren de Aragua (TdA) cartel, with conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States and narcoterrorism.
Maduro and his wife have both pleaded not guilty to the charges on the indictment and are in jail awaiting trial.
Prosecutors from the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office said Maduro and Flores would be allowed to use their personal funds for their defense.
“While both defendants claim that they are entitled to funds under the Venezuelan constitution … both defendants also surely knew that the U.S. Government did not consider them to hold legitimate positions,” prosecutors wrote in a legal submission to Hellerstein.
The United States accuses Maduro, who took office in 2013, of rigging his reelection votes in 2018 and 2024, which he denies.
In their submission to Hellerstein, the prosecutors pointed out that the Treasury sanctions against Venezuela were designed to drive Maduro from power.
