Deposed Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro pleaded not guilty to charges of narco-terrorism in a New York court on Monday, two days after being snatched by US forces in a raid on his home in Caracas.
The deposed leader and his wife made their court appearance just days after being seized in Caracas, in a shock US military operation that paved the path for Washington’s plans to control the oil-rich country.
Maduro, 63, faces narcotrafficking charges along with his wife, Cilia Flores. The pair were forcibly taken out of Caracas in a US assault on Saturday, in which commandos swooped in on helicopters, backed by fighter jets and naval forces, to capture them.
He told a federal judge in Manhattan that he had been “kidnapped” from Venezuela and said “I’m innocent, I’m not guilty,” US media reported.
“I’m still the president of my country,” he was quoted as saying.
Flores likewise pleaded not guilty.
This morning, Maduro was escor
Continue Reading on Dawn
This preview shows approximately 15% of the article. Read the full story on the publisher's website to support quality journalism.