Venezuela’s former president Nicolas Maduro has returned to court in New York, where his lawyer failed to have drug trafficking charges dismissed in a dispute over legal fees.
It was the first time Maduro, 63, and his wife, Cilia Flores, 69, appeared in court since a January hearing in which they denied all the charges. Maduro did not speak during the hearing.
He led Venezuela from 2013 until his dramatic capture, along with Flores, by US military forces on 3 January in an overnight raid on their home in Caracas.
Maduro is accused of working with drug cartels and members of the military to facilitate the shipment of thousands of tons of cocaine into the US, along with charges of ordering kidnappings, beatings and murders of those who owed them drug money or undermined their trafficking operation.
If convicted, they face life in prison.
Before the hearing, people gathered outside the courthouse in New York to protest for and against Maduro, although the larger group were supporters of the former leader. There were reports of scuffles between the two groups.
Both are being detained at Brooklyn detention centre, and neither has asked to be released on bail. The judge in the case, Alvin Hellerstein, has yet to set a trial date.
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Prosecutors have yet to disclose who will testify against Maduro, who is represented by one of America’s most prominent defence attorneys, Barry Pollack.
The lawyer argued that the US is violating the deposed leader’s constitutional rights by blocking Venezuelan government funds from being used to pay his legal costs.
Prosecutors have previously responded that the US government had authorised Maduro and Flores to use personal funds to pay their legal fees, but Maduro said he is unable to afford his defence.
Judge Hellerstein said he will decide at a future date whether the Trump administration will be ordered to allow Venezuela to pay the legal fees for Maduro and his wife.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump has again accused Maduro of being a “major purveyor of drugs coming into our country”.
During his cabinet meeting on Thursday, the US president said Maduro would be given “a fair trial”. But he also said, “I would imagine there are other trials coming”, without clarifying the comment.
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Maduro and Flores continue to enjoy some support in Venezuela, with murals and billboards across the capital, Caracas, demanding their return.
But while Maduro’s ruling party remains in power, he has slowly been erased from the government of Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela’s acting president.
