What torture charges are Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores facing in the United States?

US prosecutors accuse Maduro of directing officials to torture opposition politicians and military personnel suspected of plotting against him. The indictment describes an alleged 2014 plan to kidnap military personnel and extract information about possible dissidents; Flores is accused of agreeing with the plan.

When will Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores go on trial, and what sentence could they receive?

The trial is scheduled to begin on June 1, 2027. If convicted on all charges, Maduro and Flores would each face a mandatory minimum sentence of 50 years in prison.

How did the US case against Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores expand beyond the original drug charges?

Maduro and Flores initially pleaded not guilty to charges alleging that they abused their power to help drug traffickers ship cocaine. New charges brought the following Thursday added allegations that they conspired to torture political opponents, significantly broadening the criminal case.

Venezuela's Maduro and wife plead not guilty to US torture charges

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Summary

Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty in New York on Thursday to US charges accusing them of conspiring to torture political opponents. Prosecutors allege Maduro directed officials to kidnap and torture suspected dissidents to preserve his power, while Flores agreed with the plan. Their trial is scheduled to begin June 1, 2027, and each could face a mandatory minimum sentence of 50 years if convicted on all charges.

Key Facts

The additional torture-related charges were filed last Thursday and expanded an existing case involving allegations that Maduro and Flores helped drug traffickers ship cocaine.
The indictment alleges that Maduro directed officials in 2014 to kidnap military personnel for information about possible dissidents and later told them to “squeeze them harder” when some resisted.
Maduro and Flores are not accused of personally carrying out acts of torture.
The arraignment took place before US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in Manhattan federal court.
Maduro and Flores were captured by the US military in a January raid ordered by President Donald Trump and have since been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

By Reuters

Published Oct 16, 2026 12:48 am KST

New York City police (NYPD) officers stand outside the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse where ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores faced a new indictment accusing them of torturing political opponents and U.S. citizens to retain their grip on power, in New York City, Thursday. Reuters-Yonhap

NEW YORK — Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty on Thursday to a new US indictment accusing them of conspiring to torture political opponents.

The additional charges, brought last Thursday, significantly expanded the US criminal case against Maduro, 63, and Flores, 70. They previously pleaded not guilty to charges that they abused their power to help drug traffickers ship cocaine.

Maduro and Flores, captured by the US military in a January raid ordered by President Donald Trump and flown to New York, entered their pleas at an arraignment before US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in Manhattan federal court.

Prosecutors with the Manhattan US Attorney's office say Maduro directed officials to torture opposition politicians and military personnel accused of plotting against him to maintain power in the South American country.

In one alleged incident described in the indictment, Maduro in 2014 directed officials to kidnap military personnel to draw information out of them about possible dissidents, and told officials to "squeeze them harder" when some remained defiant.

Flores agreed with the plan in the meeting, and dismissed a suggested alternative plan to glean information by infiltrating the ranks, according to the indictment.

Maduro and Flores are not accused of personally carrying out any acts of torture. Scheduled to go on trial starting on June 1, 2027, they would each face a mandatory minimum sentence of 50 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

Relations between Maduro, a socialist, and the United States were tense during his 13 years in power leading the oil-rich country.

Successive US administrations imposed sanctions on top Venezuelan officials and key state companies, citing alleged human rights violations, corruption and election-rigging. Maduro accused the United States of seeking his ouster to gain greater control of the South American country's natural resources.

The pressure campaign culminated with the January 3 raid, when the US military captured Maduro and Flores at their Caracas home and brought them to the United States to face drug trafficking charges announced that same day. Since then, they have been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

Maduro's former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, has led Venezuela since his capture and has ramped up cooperation with the United States. Trump has touted Maduro's capture and the reset of relations with Venezuela as a key foreign policy success heading into the November 3 midterm elections in which his fellow Republicans are fighting to retain control of Congress.

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