US EditionMaduro 'Plundered' Venezuelan Wealth in Court Battle over Legal Fees, US Prosecutors Argue
Judge Alvin Hellerstein noted the right to defense is paramount while questioning the U.S. government’s sanctions blocking Venezuelan funds for Maduro’s legal fees.
- On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein questioned the government's justification for blocking ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from using state funds to pay for his legal defense against drug trafficking charges.
- U.S. military forces captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in a January 3 raid on their Caracas residence, ferrying them to New York to face narcoterrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation charges.
- Maduro's attorney, Barry Pollack, argued blocking funds violates the right to counsel of choice, while prosecutor Kyle Wirshba countered: "If the purpose of the sanctions is because the defendants are plundering the wealth of Venezuela, it would undermine the sanctions to allow them access the same funds now to pay for their defense."
- Hellerstein declined to dismiss the case but noted that "the right to defense is paramount" over government national security interests, reserving judgment on whether Venezuela can fund Maduro's legal fees.
- President Donald Trump stated Thursday that additional cases would be brought against Maduro, as supporters and opponents rallied outside the Manhattan courthouse where the former leader remains jailed pending trial.
26 Articles
26 Articles
Judge pushes Trump admin to let Venezuela pay for Maduro’s legal fees
Judge pushes Trump admin to let Venezuela pay for Maduro’s legal fees The Treasury Department had denied the country a special license to circumvent sanctions in order to pay for Maduro’s lawyer. Demonstrators protest outside Manhattan federal court before a pre-trial hearing in former Venezuela…
According to Maduro's defense, the former Venezuelan leader is unable to pay legal fees out of his own pocket.
Maduro defense, prosecutors argue over blocked funds to pay for legal team
Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s attorney argued that Caracas should pay legal fees for him and his wife, Cilia Flores, during a Thursday hearing, arguing that the two cannot afford legal representation on their own. Maduro and Flores were captured by the U.S. military in January and are facing drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges in…
US judge questions block on Maduro’s use of Venezuelan funds for defence
A US judge questioned on Thursday whether the US can bar Venezuela from funding Nicolas Maduro’s legal defence without violating his US constitutional rights, but stopped short of dismissing drug-trafficking charges against the ousted Venezuelan president facing trial in New York. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, wore beige prison garb to the hearing in Manhattan federal court over two months after US military forces captured them in a surpris…
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