Maduro set to return to court in New York for pretrial hearing

Venezuelan ousted President Nicolás Maduro is due back in a US courtroom on July 22, where his lawyers are expected to continue challenging the US military operation that removed him from power and brought him to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

The hearing was initially scheduled for June 30 but was postponed after prosecutors requested a three-week delay on June 16. Prosecutor Jay Clayton cited planning and logistical issues, as well as security concerns, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media. 

Maduro, 63, and his wife, Cilia Flores, 69, have been held at a Brooklyn jail since US forces seized them from their home in Caracas during a pre-dawn raid in early January and transported them to the United States.

Both have pleaded not guilty. They could face life in prison if convicted of participating in a conspiracy to smuggle cocaine into the United States.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has defended the operation as a “surgical law enforcement operation” linked to a criminal case first brought six years ago. Maduro, however, has described himself as a prisoner of war and his capture as a kidnapping.

US prosecutors allege that Maduro was involved in a conspiracy to move thousands of tons of cocaine into the United States by working with Venezuelan law enforcement officials to assist drug traffickers.

Maduro and Flores have not sought release on bail. US District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein has not yet set a date for the trial.

Following the capture of the Venezuelan president, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez assumed the duties of head of state.

By Sabina Mammadli