Mature returns to court and denies new charges of torture: “Falso”

O former president of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro today, during a appearance in a New York court, insisted that the torture charges included in a reformulated version of the drug trafficking against you and your wife, Cilia Flores, are “false.”.

At the hearing, prosecutors told the judge that the lawyers of both parties intend that the date of the trial be changed from 1 to 14 June.

Mature, with handcuffs on her ankles, was brought to court to answer the new charges, according to which she led a repression campaign promoted by the state, in which dozens of victims, including three American citizens, were subjected to torture.

Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein declared the two defendants innocent, in the name of Maduro and his wife, Cili Flores.

Both were captured by U.S. military forces at their residence in Caracas during a night operation in January.

Hellerstein announced that he would make a statement of non-blame on behalf of Maduro after he had twice responded to the judge's request to plead guilty or not guilty, criticizing the charge and stating that it contained “false accusations and false testimonies.” Maduro spoke through an interpreter.

Lawyer Barry Pollack stated, when the charges were announced last week, that Maduro, 63, denies them and “waits with expectation for the opportunity to defend himself in court.”.

According to the reformulated version of the charge, Maduro supervised a violent torture system, in which the victims were beaten, suffocated and subjected to electrical shocks.

Mature is also accused of personally recommending methods of torture, receiving up-to-date information about the treatment inflicted on certain victims and threatening to kill the child of a prisoner as a form of psychological torture.

According to the prosecution, 70-year-old Cilia Flores, former attorney general, helped develop the repressive system and ordered torture of certain people.

Asked about his statement of guilt, he replied through an interpreter: “I am completely innocent. I am not guilty.”.

The reworded charge covers allegations of torture dating back to Maduro's coming to power in 2013 when he succeeded his mentor, Hugo Chávez, who died of cancer in the Presidency that year.

Maduro, who was President of Venezuela between 2013 and his capture, in January this year, has been under investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for several years for alleged crimes against humanity related to the repression of opponents. The former head of state has always denied any irregularity.

Torture is a crime under international law and can be judged outside the country where the abuses took place, regardless of the nationality of the victims.

However, court proceedings in the United States against foreign officials are extremely rare, having occurred only on few occasions, notably against the son of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, Russian citizens responsible for war crimes in Ukraine and a former warden of a prison in Syria of the then regime of Bashar al-Assad.

Earlier this year, Maduro and his wife declared themselves innocent in the U.S. drug trafficking suit, in which they are accused of conspiring to flood the U.S. market with cocaine.

The lawyers of the two defendants argue that the case should be dismissed on the basis of immunity, since Maduro was head of state of a foreign country and Flores was acting as First Lady.